The Fairy Tail League
by crbrgmi
Summary: The city of Magnolia is in turmoil, and only the heroes of The Fairy Tail League can protect it and its citizens. After coming face to face with the Salamander in action, Lucy vows to tell the real story of Magnolia's own Super Hero guild. But are they really heroes like she wants to believe? Or are they part of something more sinister? rated for dark themes, language, and lemons
1. The Salamander

Chapter 1 - The Salamander

Lucy and her friend, Levy, walked down the street together, both chatting away about the day's activities: their boss constantly overreacting to the smallest of errors in someone's article, and especially the way Jason took it upon himself to ask Lucy on a date.

"You said no, of course," Levy said, shaking her head. "That poor boy is too overexcited for his own good."

"Well, I felt bad for him," Lucy shrugged. "He's been shot down by three other girls this week."

"You said yes?!" Her friend stared at her with wide eyes, and her mouth hung open. "Lucy!" she wailed. "You're just asking for the most inappropriate, not to mention grotesque, experience ever."

"Well, I'm only twenty-three and haven't gone on one date since my first year in college. How bad can it be?" She played with the key-shaped charm on her necklace. "Besides, I'll be doing him a favor."

"But, what if it doesn't work out? Or worse? It does? Lucy I can't bear to see you leave Magnolia Times because of some whacked out office romance that either does or doesn't go well."

The blonde shrugged. "We'll just have to wait and see. But I will promise you one thing: I'm _never _leaving that place."

Levy linked their arms together, holding Lucy to that promise.

They were almost to their home when the sound of a cheering crowd caught their attention. Naturally curious, Levy pulled her friend over to see what the commotion was. All they could tell from their point of view in the back of the crowd was that someone was probably doing some sort of street show, and it involved fire. Growing in excitement, the girls pushed their way to the front, shouting claims of being reporters from the Magnolia Times, which actually made people move out their way.

When they arrived to the center, what they saw blew them away.

A man was literally playing with fire. He juggled two balls made entirely of flames before snuffing them out. He waved his hands around, conjuring more fire out of thin air.

That's all it was, though - a fancy street performance.

What caught their attention, though, was how the man was dressed. He wore black pants that pooled around his ankles, tucked inside ankle-high sneakers. His chest was bare, save for a black leather vest and a white scarf he wore around his neck. As soon as their eyes landed on his face, they felt the air rush out of them. He wore a mask over his eyes, decorated in flames made out of some sort of fabric that shimmered and swayed, imitating real flames. His hair was a soft shade of pink, which reminded Lucy of cotton candy.

Levy got caught up with the crowd's intensity, cheering the man on as he performed more tricks with his fire. Lucy couldn't stop staring at his face, and, she blushed as she thought this, realized that he was looking right at her.

The man did a few more showy things, jumping rope with a flame rope, conjuring a partner made of flames, and doing some sort of dance. She knew he was just doing this for money, as people happily threw coins and paper money into a hat laid in front of him, but she had to admit, his talent with fire was more than just extraordinary. She knew it was all some sort of magic trick, but he made it look good. But, wasn't that how magicians sold their magic?

In the end, she was more impressed with his looks than his actual illusions.

After another five or so minutes of flame-play, he extinguished the flames and bowed for the crowd, gathering more cheers and money. A little boy appeared (seemingly out of nowhere) and grabbed the hat, jingling the coins and smiling big.

"Thank you, everyone!" the boy shouted out as the man gathered his materials. "The Salamander appreciates your donations, and will be here tomorrow night for another wonderful performance!"

Levy pulled Lucy as the rest of the crowd began to disperse, but she couldn't bring herself to move. Instead she used Levy's hold on her to pull the bluenette with her toward the masked fire man.

"Excuse me," she called, using her reporter authority voice. The man and the kid looked up at her, the kid scowling while the man smirked. "Can I ask who you are? How did you do that with the fire? And why are you wearing a mask?"

The man looked down to the boy, who nodded back and moved to push the girls back. "I'm sorry, ladies, but the Salamander doesn't talk to the press."

"What is that?" Levy asked. "What does 'The Salamander' mean?"

"Again, I'm sorry. You'll just have to cut your losses there and deal with not knowing."

As the girls allowed the boy to push them away, they didn't notice the man disappear in a puff of smoke.

**AN: Hello! And welcome to another new story of mine, something that actually just popped into my head, and now I'm trying to configure into a plot and everything. Here's the first chapter, so let me know what you think. I'm trying to go for a superhero vibe, which you can't really tell from this chapter, but will obviously become more evident. So please, review/fave/follow, even though the first chapter wasn't much to go on. More to come soon. I promise!**


	2. Coffee Break

**AN: Another short chapter, but it was all I could come up with. The next chapter is where the action starts. I'm a little nervous I'm not that great at writing action sequences, so I'll hold onto that one for another day or two to make sure it's good. Please review/follow/fave so I know to update!**

Chapter 2 - Coffee Break

The next morning came too soon for Lucy. She had been up all night, fantasizing about those eyes. She hadn't seen them clearly in reality, but, in her dreams, they came to her a blazing red. If she wasn't dreaming about those eyes, she was tossing and turning, fretting over why a

simple street performer affected her so much.

In the end, she gave up on sleep, and stayed up watching movies. Not the ideal way for her to go into work, but she didn't work in a place where she had the luxury to call in just because she didn't sleep the previous night.

She spent the day at her desk, drink coffee like it was water and she was dying of thirst in the middle of the desert, just so she could stay focused on her current project. In the end, the mixture of no sleep plus extreme levels of caffeine cause the words on her computer screen to meld together, and she found she couldn't work like she wanted to.

It was the late afternoon before she finally gave up trying to spell "inconsistent", which didn't seem to turn out right for the last five minutes.

Standing up from her chair, she stretched and decided on a leisure walk from her desk to the break room, where she would fill up her mug with more coffee. As she arrived, she noticed, with horror, that the coffee maker was currently empty. She refused to believe that she was the one who drank it all, but started her task of brewing more.

"Whoo, look at you, all dressed and nowhere to go," a voice said behind her with a whistle. She turned her head a bit and smiled at her coworker, Cana. The woman came to stand beside Lucy.

Lucy glanced down at her outfit, barely remembering when and how she even managed to get dressed that morning. She wore a button up top, with a few unbuttoned, showing off a little cleavage. It was tucked into a black mini skirt, that hugged tightly against her hips, ending just above her knees. Black stockings and knee-high heeled boots completed her look.

Shrugging, she poured water into the apparatus at the back of the coffee machine. "I've actually got a date tonight."

Cana whistled again. "A hot one?"

Laughing, Lucy shook her head. "I wouldn't hold my breath." She glanced around before leaning in and whispering, "more of a pity date?"

Cana blinked at her for a second before opening her mouth wide in a loud laugh, and she patted her friend's back. "I didn't think you had it in you, Luce. You really are a nice person, aren't you?"

Levy walked in, holding an empty water bottle. "Who's a nice person?"

"Miss Lucky Lucy, here," Cana replied, again patting Lucy on the back.

Levy sighed as she filled her water bottle from the water dispenser. "Lucy, you shouldn't be going on this date. You deserve someone much more handsome, with steely blue eyes, possibly a corporate CEO; a total humanitarian on the outside, but with a much darker, sexier attitude hiding behind the curtains."

Lucy shook her head in disbelief. "Levy, don't tell me you jumped on the 50 Shades wagon!"

Blushing, Levy ducked her head. "Hey, it's actually a good read."

"Oh, please," Cana chimed in. "That book is nothing but pure smut, and you know it."

"Hey!" She glanced around to make sure they were alone, much like Lucy had done a few minutes ago. "Smut is a single girl's best friend, thank you very much."

"Ah, yeah, I guess we wouldn't know about that, being dating women and all." Cana gently elbowed Lucy with a wink before walking out of the break room.

Levy groaned. "Oh, God, Lucy, you're not really going through with it, are you?"

"It's too late to change my mind, Levy." She joined her friend at the table in the middle of the break room. "It's only for tonight, and, hopefully, it won't last long. Want to go for drinks after?"

Levy tapped her chin in mock thought. "I don't know. What if he charms the pants right off you? What if you don't come home tonight? I don't know what I'd do to wake up and find out that you spent the night with him." She groaned again and covered her face with her hands as images of her best friend and the weird guy doing coitus.

"Hey! Give me some credit at least. I'm not like Cana, who sleeps with the first guy she lays her eyes on at the beginning of the day."

Levy grabbed Lucy's wrists from across the table, a desperate look in her eyes. "Please, Lucy, call me before you decide to do anything with him after dinner."

Lucy chuckled, pulled one of her hands from her friend's grasp, and used her finger to cross her heart. "I promise to console you before doing any rash or drunken decisions."

With the nod of approval from Levy, the blonde stood up, filled her mug, and sauntered back to her desk, suddenly feeling energetic and giddy enough to concentrate on her work. The thought of alcohol after the week she's had was enough to make her actually look forward to dinner.


	3. Target Acquired

Chapter 3 - Target Acquired

_Meanwhile..._

The girl hummed to herself while she typed furiously on her laptop. She smirked as the words flowed freely from her fingertips, causing her to blush at the realization that such dirty words could come from her mind, and she was actually brave enough to put them into the world for all to see.

She froze in the middle of a sentence. If anyone were to read what she was typing, she'd die of embarrassment. She sat up in her chair and glanced around her cubicle, making sure no one was was walking around her. Satisfied that she was alone, she turned back to her computer and resumed typing, losing herself in her imagination.

She didn't know how much time passed, but just as she was getting to the climax, she felt a hand on her shoulder, causing her to scream at the top of her lungs, slam her laptop down, and try to use it as a blunt weapon against the person behind her.

The man caught the computer in his hand, giving her a wide grin. "You need to be careful with technology, Lisanna," he said, taking the machine from her and gently patting it sarcastically. "Don't want you to lose your riveting story."

"Natsu, you asshole," she scolded, her face beet red, reaching for her computer. "Give that back to me! Now, or I'll tell Big Sis."

"You can go and tell her, and then I'll let her know the contents of this." He handed the computer back, chuckling. "I don't know who she'd be more mad at; me for stealing the thing, or you for writing such dirty stuff instead of doing your research."

The petite, white haired girl gently placed her computer back on her desk before turning to her friend and sighing. "There's nothing more to research. Either we were given false information, or the trail ended up cold. Nothing has shown up in the last few days. I don't know what else to do if you or the other boys can't sniff him out."

Her pink haired companion scowled for a second. "The trail isn't cold," he pouted. "He's here, I know he is."

She poked him in his chest. "Then you go and do your job and find him."

Natsu grabbed her hand, holding it close to his body. He knew the reaction he got out of her when he did intimate things like this, and he didn't try to hide that he knew, either. He smirked as her blush deepened, and he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles.

"All right," he said softly, letting her hand go. She immediately pulled her hand back and held it against her chest. "We're gearing up in a minute, anyway. I actually just came here to tell you that Mira wanted you at the home base while she tracked us through the city."

Lisanna glared up at him and smacked his arm. "Natsu, you're the biggest asshole I've ever met." She turned away from him and started gathering her things.

"Aw, you know that's not true. Gray is a bigger asshole than me."

She bit her lip, not wanting to say anything, but she turned around to yell at him some more. She blinked when she realized that she was, once again, alone. Sighing, she went back to putting her laptop in its case, and hoisting it over her shoulder. She wished he wouldn't tease her so much. He knew her feelings for him, and yet he treated her like a child.

"One day, Natsu," she whispered as she made her way around the office, "someone is going to catch your eye, and you'll be conflicted like I am."

Natsu didn't have to be right next to his friend and partner to hear what she just said. He felt it on the wind as he stared at the restaurant, across the city from where he was a moment ago. Across the street, he had already found the main object of his current desires: a delightfully luscious blonde woman, currently having dinner and drinks with a lanky, geeky looking guy with a strange hairdo.

He scoffed quietly to himself, looking up and around his surroundings from atop the building. What was a gorgeous creature like her doing with a thing like that? He looked back down at the scene before him, but something caught his eye, and he jumped from the building, using his fire to slow his fall, and he landed on his feet.

The people around him backed away from him, terrified of the fire, and yet curious to see someone land so softly on the ground.

The man they had been trailing was right in front of him, walking down the sidewalk, seemingly unaware that Natsu had made his presence known. He adjusted his mask, making sure none of his face was revealed, and he turned on the communication device hidden behind his ear.

"Ice Princess, Iron Lung, I found our guy."

"Fuck you, flamedick," a voice crackled over the speaker in his ear. "What did Titania tell you about our codenames?"

"Who the fuck cares? I'm on my way, Salamander."

Natsu smirked at his partners' responses, but he also couldn't wait for them to show up. Their target was weaving in and out of the busy Friday night crowd, and he didn't want to lose the man. He dashed towards the man trying to escape - he had to have noticed Natsu's arrival by now - and he just barely missed the man as he sidestepped the flame mage just before he could be grabbed.

Natsu cursed and quickly turned around, charging for the man, who had thought that taking refuge in a nearby store would keep Natsu from charging him.

Natsu grinned as the man grabbed a bystander to use as a shield. _Is this guy serious? Does he really think I'll hold back just because someone got in the way?_

Just before Natsu could crash into the window of the store, a heavy force shoved him down face first into the concrete sidewalk.

"Ow, what the fuck?!" He picked his head up, only to be met with a pair dark blue eyes behind a light blue mask. "You douche bag." He jumped up and swung at his ice partner, but the other man dodged his attack.

"You serious? Do I look like the target?"

"Well, you could have fooled me the way you stopped me from attacking the target!"

"Guys, he's getting away." A third member flew in between them, catching up to their target who had managed to sneak out of the store and was heading in the opposite direction down the street.

Without a moment's hesitation, Natsu and his partner flew after the third in their group.

"Okay, guys," Lisanna's voice sounded in their ears. "Catch this guy with the most minimal amount of damage, please? We don't want another episode like Oak Town."

"Chill out, we got this."

"Listen here, Demon Slayer. We have strict orders to capture the target without destroying anything. Can you guys handle that?"

Salamander and Demon Slayer glanced at each other, a silent understanding that they would settle the score when they were back at the home base, and they caught up with their third member, Black Steel, just as he landed in the street.

Their target stopped, and stared at the three of them, his hands resting on his belt.

"Shit," Black Steel muttered. "I'd get down if I were you," he called to the bystanders around him.

The people around were unsure what to do, so they stood there, watching to see what would happen.

"Fucking idiots," Demon Slayer yelled as he created an ice wall in front of their target. The man smiled as he revealed a gun on his belt. The trio knew it was no ordinary gun, and, without a second thought, Black Steel picked up a parked car, and hurled it at the target, while Salamander set the car on fire.

The man in the middle of the street wasn't ready for a flying flaming car, since his view was obstructed by the ice wall, and he took aim. The car crashed through the ice, and crashed into the guy.

The people around started screaming and running around in a panicked mob.

Black Steel turned to his partners and sighed. "I told them to move, didn't I?"

"It's not your fault. People are the same everywhere." Salamander kept his eyes on the flaming car, but it didn't move. He didn't kill the guy, did he? Great. He was already in enough hot water with the bosses, and this wouldn't go well for him if their target was dead.

The trio stepped closer, each on their guard, but none of them expected the car to explode, causing them to fly back, and debris to scatter everywhere. Salamander sat up from where he landed - having crashed into a wall, and he was laying on a pile of brick and mortar. He held his head as he saw the street around him. Everything was in flames, and car bits were scattered everywhere. Their target stood in the middle of the destruction, his red eyes staring deathly into his own.

He rolled his neck to let the enemy know that he was all right, when he glanced over and noticed the restaurant in flames. The girl was just in there. _Please, don't tell me that she's stuck in there_. He ground his teeth as he made his to way the restaurant, ignoring the calls of his teammates.

He glance around, but he couldn't sense her anywhere. Had she managed to escape?

"Salamander!"

He turned to see his teammates fighting the man hand to hand. He was suddenly torn - does he join the fight or make sure that girl was okay?

He watched Black Steel hit the target in the back of his head with an iron hammer that he conjured, and knew that they were okay without him. He glanced around, and picked up a scent.

"You guys finish here, I'll meet you back at headquarters!" He conjured his flames and flew up towards the top of the buildings - for easier travelling and locating the woman - ignoring the protests of his teammates and Lisanna in his ear. He clicked the off button of the communication apparatus, and continued to search for the girl.

The two partners were left in the middle of the destroyed block, but they had apprehended their target. Demon Slayer cracked his knuckles and was about to follow Salamander, but Black Steel held his hand up to stop him.

"You leave me alone in this place, and, after Master kills me, I'll come back from the dead and kill you first, and I'll make sure it's painful." He hoisted the man up, having knocked him out with that blow to the back of the head.

Demon Slayer nodded, but couldn't help glaring in the direction their partner left them. Titania and Demoness were certainly going to have their intestines for breakfast after they see the damage they done. In all fairness, it wasn't really their fault - it was the guy who hung limply at Black Steel's side.

There was a flash of light, and both men immediately shifted into fighting stances, prepared for another battle, but when they saw who caused the flash, they relaxed a bit.

Jason slowly lowered the camera, his mind unable to confirm what he just witnessed. "Cool," he breathed out.

**~.~**

**AN: Thanks to all who fave/follow/reviewed. **


	4. Seeing is Believing

**AN: Thank you for all the support so far. It really helps the inspiration flow. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

~.~

Chapter 4 - Seeing is Believing

Lucy felt a little unnerved during dinner, and, oddly enough, it wasn't the ecstatic man sitting in front of her. She had that strange sensation that someone was watching her, but every time she turned to try to see anyone suspicious, there was no one, just the usual bustling of the street on a Friday evening.

The restaurant was small, intimate, and very expensive. Jason impressed her when he brought her here. Normally, the only way to get a table there was a reservation set at least a month in advance; Lucy had a few theories on how Jason had actually gotten the table, but every one of them was sad and depressing, so she kept them to herself.

Jason said something and laughed, and Lucy started laughing. She hadn't really been paying attention to the conversation. How could she? She kept feeling someone's eyes on her. She glanced behind her again, taking a drink of her water as she did so, to avoid saying anything in response to what he had said, since she didn't know what it was he said. In the beginning of the dinner, he insisted she drink the restaurant's finest wine, which she really wanted to accept, but she had been looking forward to drinking with Levy afterward, and didn't want to show up drunk.

As soon as she had turned around again, the sight made her spit out her water on the patron sitting at the table next to theirs.

"Hey!" the woman exclaimed.

Lucy ignored her, standing up from her seat. She looked back at Jason, who was scared out of his mind at what might happen with the woman who looked like she wore jewelry that cost more than his year's salary.

"Jason, did you see that?" Lucy asked, pointing out the window. She really hoped she wasn't hallucinating. due to her paranoia from earlier; but, judging from the reactions of the people outside, she knew what she saw was real.

"Excuse me, young lady," the woman tried again, but Lucy's attention couldn't be torn away from the window.

"Jason!" she exclaimed, pushing the door open, "get your camera, now!" She pulled out her phone and speed-dialed Levy.

It was that man from before...the one with the fire. It was the street performer, oh, what was his name? She saw him drop from the sky and immediately fly - yes, fly - down the street. By the time she had made her way to the sidewalk, he had already travelled two blocks down.

"Lucy? Are you guys done already?" Levy's voice surprised her, having completely forgotten that she had called her friend as soon as she saw how far the man had gone.

"Levy, come down to Fifth and Mountain," she said quickly.

"Fifth and Mountain? That'll take me about ten minutes tops."

Lucy gasped as she saw something else fall from the sky and drop onto the fire guy. "Make it quicker. You need to be here, now!"

"Lucy, what did Jason do?" Levy's voice was hurried, panicked, not having the slightest clue what was going on. For all she knew, Jason probably slipped something into her drink and was trying to take advantage of her.

Hearing her date's name caused to Lucy to blink for a second before she pulled the phone from her ear and stared down at it for a second, before replacing its position. "What? No, nothing."

Speaking of Jason, he finally managed to make it out of the restaurant, pocketing his wallet while grabbing one of his smaller cameras from his pants pocket. She knew, wherever he went, Jason always had some sort of camera on him for situations like these.

"Just hurry and get here, I'll meet you." Without hearing Levy's questions, she hung up on her friend, just in time for three masked men to show up in the middle of the street, each one with eyes set on another man a few yards from them.

Lucy couldn't help herself, and took a picture of them with her phone.

"Cool," Jason muttered next to her, taking pictures of the three masked men, the other man, and the crowds. "Ah, they're so cool!"

Everything seemed calm, until the other man pulled a weapon from his belt. That set the panic rolling through the crowds, and Lucy felt herself get pushed away, moving along with the mob. She and Jason were separated, but as she tried to fight the mob, it seemed like she was moving farther away. Trying to keep her focus on what was happening, she managed to see an ice wall suddenly form, which surprised her enough to stop fighting the mob. Then, she seemed to snap out of her reverie as soon as she noticed a flying car of fire crash through the wall, and onto the man.

Lucy looked around, letting the mob push her farther away, and she managed to make her way closer to the buildings they were passing, and pulled herself away, taking refuge in an alleyway. She glanced down at the phone she held tightly in her hand, and she stared at the picture she took.

Three men stood, but she wasn't quite sure how to describe the scene. They were all wearing masks, each one very similar, except the colors. The fire guy was the same as the other day, except he was wearing an orange suit. The other two were the same. There was a man dressed in a light blue suit, his mask, only covering the top half of his face, was decorated in various blues. His hair was raven dark, but short like the flame guy's. The third was the tallest of the three, and his hair the longest, and his costume the darkest; he looked almost ominous. He was dressed in all black, his hair cascading down his back, settling on his lower back. His mask was a mixture of black and gray, and it looked like he had several piercings on his face, or from what she could see of his face. If she were honest with herself, he seemed like the more intimidating of the three.

A low rumble interrupted her focus, and she had to grab onto the wall as it felt like there was a quick earthquake that shook. Immediately she tried to get back onto the main street to see what happened, but the mob had gotten worse, and all she could hear were screams and the distant whine of sirens. She turned and made her way to the other side of the alley, coming out to an empty street, seemingly untouched by the action going on the other side. Looking up and down the street, she realized there was no easier way for her to get back to the restaurant. Sighing, she turned around and made her way back to Fifth Street, deciding it was better to wait out the mob instead of running all over creation, tiring herself out, trying to get back to the scene. By the time she got there, it'd probably be all cleaned up and taped off by the police anyway.

Sighing, she leaned against the dirty wall, still unsure of what she had seen. Three men flying, an ice wall appearing in the middle of summer, a flying flaming car...She was definitely going to need those drinks later.

"There's a lot of commotion around," a voice said next to her, causing her to jump and, without thinking, throw a punch at her sudden visitor, her fist connecting with his chest, though it didn't do much except bring a chuckle out. She looked up and gasped at who it was that she punched.

He stepped back and bowed with a flourish. "The Salamander, at your service." He glanced up and grinned.

Lucy blinked at him, not sure if he was joking or not, but also incredibly embarrassed that she actually punched him, even though it didn't seem to do anything to him. Well, so much for those self-defense classes.

The Salamander stood tall again, looking down at her surprised face, still smiling. He was used to this reaction, and it really amused him more than anything. She began to unconsciously skirt her eyes over his clothing, and couldn't help but think how tacky the color was. She didn't realize they made bright orange anymore, at least not since the disco age.

"Are you going to tell me your name, or you going to keep ogling me?" He chuckled at her again when she quickly brought her eyes back up to his face. He took a step toward her, a little triumphant when she took a hesitant step back, bumping in the wall. He leaned down close, making them eye to eye, while he raised an eyebrow, expecting an answer.

She couldn't help the blush that appeared on her cheeks as he came closer. She couldn't help getting lost in his onyx colored eyes, and she soon felt a little lightheaded.

"I'm Lucy," she breathed.

"Lucy," he repeated in a whisper. "Lucy." He seemed to be rolling her name on his tongue, trying it out, feeling how the name sounded. He placed a hand on the wall next to her head as he leaned in closer. "Such a pretty name for such a pretty woman."

Lucy could feel the blush deepen as he brought up his free hand to play with a stray strand of hair that loosened itself from her bun from all the excitement from a few moments ago.

"Th-thank you," she squeaked. He smiled at her, and scoffed, dropping her hair and gently touching her cheek. She almost melted from his touch, and almost involuntarily leaned into him to close the distance, wanting nothing more than to taste his lips with her own.

She would have, too, had it not been for someone calling her name from outside the alley. She jumped and looked toward the street, seeing Levy quickly making her way to them, her fists balled, ready to attack if she was needed. She glanced at Salamander when she heard him moan quietly.

"Too bad," he whispered. He placed a gentle kiss on her lips before pulling back. He summoned flames to his feet, and pushed off the ground, disappearing from sight over the tall building.

Lucy's eyes were wide, her hand had immediately gone to her lips when he departed. His skin was warm, comforting, and she missed his touch almost as soon as he left. She barely registered Levy grabbing her arm, throwing question after question to her. She finally blinked back to reality and focused on her friend.

"Lucy! What the hell happened?"

Lucy's face broke out in a wide smile. "You're not going to believe it, Levy." She produced her phone and immediately showed Levy the picture she took. "Look at this! Isn't this crazy?"

Levy glanced up at her friend after studying the picture for a moment. "Yeah, real crazy. Three men dressed up for Mardi-Gras." Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "What I want to know is why you called me out here in such a hurry. And who was that guy?" She didn't miss the swift kiss, and she wanted every juicy detail that came with it.

"He is this guy! He's the street performer from the other night. He uses fire to fly." She pointed at the picture. "They all can fly. They came out of nowhere, seeming to have some sort of western standoff with some other guy. Then there was ice, a flying car…"

"Whoa...are you sure you aren't drunk?"

"I'm not drunk." She held her hand to her forehead. "But I really could go for those drinks that we promised." Taking a deep breath, a thought came to her. "Levy, don't you remember reading about Oak Town last year?"

"Yeah, who could forget it. Nearly the whole town was destroyed in that explosion."

"I have a feeling they might have had something to do with it."

"How? What did they do?"

"Well, I'm not entirely sure, but just awhile ago it felt like there was some sort of little explosion. I've been stuck here pretty much the whole time, so I don't know what exactly exploded, but…"

"Lucy, you've had a rough week." Levy began pulling Lucy out of the alley and toward their apartment. "I think what you need right now is a bath and a good night's sleep. We'll go out tomorrow night."

Lucy grabbed her friend's arms. "Levy, you should have been there. You would have loved to see it."

Levy smiled and patted Lucy's hand, trying to calm her friend down. "I'm sure I'll be there next time. Maybe something will happen tomorrow? Wouldn't that be lucky?" She bit her bottom lip, a little jealous at having missed what happened, but also feeling bad for not really believing there will be a next time.

Except…

She looked up where the flame guy disappeared to. He seemed taken with Lucy so, maybe there will be a next time? And she vowed she'd be there. No more pity dates for Lucy; Levy is going to hang on to her until she was able to see them all for herself.


	5. Interrogation

**AN: Thank you all again for the lovely support, that I just had to stay up waaaay passed my bedtime to get this chapter put up. It sort of takes a turn that I hadn't intended it to go (like, at all!), but it went there, and I hope it works.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail! Not mine. :'( **

~.~

Chapter 5 - Interrogation

The dark skinned man smiled at the woman sitting across the table from him. His hands were cuffed to the arms of the metal chair he was sitting on, so he couldn't conjure another weapon out of thin air. He had already tried that tactic once before, until Titania knocked him out and tied him up.

"Has he said anything yet?"

Lisanna looked behind her as the door opened. She sighed and shook her head, turning back to the one-way window as the Master walked up to stand next to her. She couldn't help the warm smile from showing on her face as he had to climb onto a specially made stool so he could see through the glass. The Master was about as small as a toddler, but wasn't shy about it at all - in fact, everyone suspected that his shortness actually fed his powers and attitude, so no one used his height against him.

"Neither of them have said a word in almost twenty minutes," she told him. "We're still analyzing his guns, so no information there, either."

"Well, at least we finally caught someone this time," Master muttered. "And without much damage, either." He shook his head. He was pissed, to say the least, when he found out those knuckleheads took out an entire block of one of the most popular streets in all of Magnolia, full of rich and high-end shops, but it still wasn't as bad as it could have been. He glanced up to the girl. "I don't want to hear about the costs until after they've been paid...and a month has passed. Maybe I'll have had enough time to prepare myself for the shock."

"It's really not as bad as you may think, Master," she replied quietly, smiling down at him. Everyone loved him - he was like their grandfather, and he acted like one. He loved and treated each one of his subordinates with the respect and care they all deserved. That being said, he really didn't like their three main partners very much.

Sure, maybe together, they were all a bit rambunctious, but if they were to work alone things would turn out much worse than they normally did. They were all so lucky Demon Slayer stopped Salamander when he did; otherwise, who knew just how much more catastrophic the damage could have been? There would have been civilian casualties, not to mention he probably wouldn't have held back on the man they currently held captive had he tried attacking.

All in all, their teamwork helped save lives and buildings, even if they all disliked each other. Though Lisanna knew that their dislike was all just a cover up, a tough-guy complex. Deep down, they all cared for one another; she's seen their compassionate sides - it was what drew her to Natsu in the first place.

She blushed as she remembered their brief experiment on a relationship, but quickly forced her focus to the silent pair in front of her. Besides, she knew a relationship with Natsu wasn't going to last long - it only started when Natsu found an oversized egg and she offered to help him hatch it. They shared a couple steamy nights together (which were some of her best nights in her life, though she would never admit them out loud), but things ended almost abruptly when the egg hatched to reveal a magical blue talking feline. No one in the League had seen that coming - honestly, no one believed anything would hatch from the egg at all, most just thought it was a largely decorative rock that he took from some rich person's house.

Either way, Lisanna had seen Natsu's purely innocent moments in those days, and she would hold them close to her heart always. Who knows? Maybe one day he'd take his head out of his ass and finally notice how much she really cared for him, instead of thinking she was just after his body like every other girl whom he came across.

Speaking of which, Lisanna couldn't wait until she was in the privacy of her own room so she could do research on this blonde woman he suddenly had his sights on. Natsu was never one to pursue someone, so, naturally, she was curious. Had they met before? Was she some long lost childhood friend that he never bothered to mention until he finally found her again? Honestly, she didn't think Natsu had a life before Oak Town, when she had met him, but he never mentioned anything from his past, so she couldn't really jump to any conclusions.

Lisanna jumped out of her reverie when the scarlet haired Titania suddenly shot up from her seat, knocking the metal furniture to the ground with a loud crash, causing Lisanna to jump from the loud noise. The woman in the room seemed to be getting very impatient, as the two in the observation room watched her dive over the table that sat between them, grabbing the man's shirt in tight fists.

"Answer me, dickwad!" she yelled, causing the man to blanche in near terror. Lisanna smiled slightly - Titania always managed to create fear in any man, no matter how tough they seemed to be. "Who are you? Who are you working for?"

Master sighed as the man shook his head, looking like he suddenly forgot how to speak. "I better go in there and stop her before she kills this one," he muttered as he stepped off his stool.

"You better hurry, Master," Lisanna said quickly. "She's changing into something sinister looking. I don't think he'll hold up much longer."

The man in the room shook his head as his attacker's clothes changed in a flash of bright light. Suddenly, Titania wasn't wearing her normal armor - a chest plate over a pretty blue dress - and she was wearing some sort of dominatrix outfit. Lisanna blushed when she realized more skin was revealed than she had wanted to see. Titania held out one of her hands, and a whip appeared. She pulled it back and was about to use it on the man, but the door opened and Master stopped her, just by quietly saying her name.

Everyone knew Titania was a ticking bomb, but only Master had the ability to calm her nerves with just the sound of his voice. Some said that part of his power was being able to set the mood of a room with just the tone of his voice, but, if that were true, he only used this calming effect on Titania, even though there were a few others who could probably benefit from it. Lisanna didn't believe it, however. She knew it was just because of Titania's love and respect for the old man that made her do his bidding, even if he just gave her a look. Lisanna had a little theory that, just maybe, Titania really was his blood granddaughter, but it was just a thought. After all, if he wasn't quiet about his one grandson, then why would he keep a granddaughter a secret?

The man looked at Master with pure adoration and gratitude, but that was short lived as Master's hand stretched across the room, slapping the man with much more force than an eighty-year-old man should be capable of. Titania stood back and smirked at the man as his chair toppled over. The scarlet haired beauty stood over him, her hands on her hips, giving him an eyeful of every curve and barely hidden female body part that her outfit allowed him to see. Her one piece, black leather suit looked like a skimpy bathing suit, barely hiding her womanhood, ass, and boobs. Her thigh-high high heels made her seem taller than she really was, but that only added to her sinister attitude. She grasped the whip tightly, really wanting nothing more than to use it on that ugly slime-ball's face.

Maybe he would start talking then?

She bent down, so her torso was parallel with the man's. "I'll ask you again, and you better give me an answer, or so help me I'll whip you so hard your skin will tear away from the strikes, until you're nothing but a bloody mess on the floor." She bent lower toward him, her ass sticking in the air. Lisanna had the courtesy to look away, but she found Master discreetly staring at the younger's woman's bum. "Who are you?"

The man on the ground clenched his teeth, contemplating his answer, or if he would give an answer at all - well, if he valued his life, he would. Finally, he rolled his eyes and groaned.

"My name is Boze," he blinked in relief as the woman slowly started straightening herself back up, satisfied with his answer. "Though I hate to break it to you, I don't work with anyone. I work alone, honey."

That statement brought her anger right back in a snap, and, without warning, she slashed the whip across his cheek, causing his glasses to break and fly off his face. She turned from him, not wanting to face him anymore in case she really did kill him.

"Then where did you get your weapons?" Master asked from his place still by the door. "There's no way someone lonely like you could acquire them on accident, or afford them."

"Well, get used to the idea of it, old man," their prisoner called from the floor, not able to see anything from his spot on the floor. "I bought my guns from the black market for a steal."

Titania growled, turned around, and shot her whip at him again, somehow managing to get it around his neck, and pulled his chair back up. His gratitude short lived as she grabbed his purpled shirt again, and punched him in his temple, causing him to lose consciousness immediately. Lisanna felt a little bad for the man; after receiving a blow from Black Steel, and taking two knock-out blows from Titania, both within just a couple hours from each other, she was sure he was going to have a concussion, if he didn't already have one.

She pressed a button for the intercom. "I think that's all we're going to get out of him for the night." The two in the interrogation room glanced at her. "We can try again tomorrow."

Contented with the day's progress, if one would even call it progress, Titania unlocked the cuffs off the man from the chair, and dragged his lifeless body out of the room, and towards his jail. Master nodded at Lisanna, dismissing her from her duties for the night, and also left the room.

The girl stretched her arms over head, and groaned as her joints popped. She had worked a long, tiring day, and she couldn't wait to get to her bed.

As she gathered her notes from the small table in front of her, she heard the door behind her open. Thinking it was Master again, she didn't think anything of it, until a hard body pressed up against her backside, two arms wrapping around her small waist as she was pulled into the body. She felt her stomach flip-flop as she felt the newcomer's nose in her hair, sniffing her shampoo.

"Where do you think you're going in such a hurry?" a gruff voice asked, sending shivers down her spine.

"I was going to go to bed," she answered, her heart pounding out of her chest as she felt one of his hands travel down her stomach to massage her hip, pulling her skirt up as he did so, his other arm tightening his hold on her.

"Want company?" She shuddered as she felt his lips on the back of her neck.

"Only if you really want to." Her breath caught in her throat as his hand moved from her hip to caress the forbidden area between her legs, chuckling slightly when he realized the effect he had on her, feeling the wetness soak her panties.

She allowed herself to be coaxed by him, though she knew she shouldn't. Wasn't she just thinking about him being with another woman a few minutes ago? Wasn't she just reminding herself that he didn't really love her like she wanted him to? He probably just came to her because his time with that other woman was cut short, and he was in need to someone to help him release his frustration - and she was more than happy to relieve him.

Her hand slowly traveled up to massage his feathery pink hair, pushing on his head so he continued to kiss and nip at her neck.

"I will if you promise to demonstrate what your characters were doing in your story earlier," his whispered, nipping at the sensitive area connecting her shoulder to her neck, sending more shivers and heat down her body, congregating to the area his skilled fingers were currently massaging.

He pressed his hardening member against her lower back as she began rubbing against him, feeling herself losing control with him. The fact that he was currently fingering her in the observation room only adding to her pleasure, and her first orgasm ripping through her so suddenly, she hadn't even felt it rising at all.

Only Natsu could do that to her, though, and, she was shameful for letting it happen, but unable to stop it happening altogether. He removed his hand from her slick, wet core, and used that hand to cup her chin and turn her face so he could capture her lips with his own in feverish urgency.

She couldn't help a sigh escape when he pulled away, smirking at her. She allowed herself to be pulled out of the room, her notes forgotten on the table behind her, and she excitedly - though unable to push her shame down - followed the man of her desires to lead her to her room, where she would help him release, and then be left alone as he'd slip out of her bed. Naturally she'd pretend to be sleeping; at least he had that much amount of courtesy to not leave until she was asleep.

And then she'd spend the whole night crying into her pillow. Why did she allow herself to be subject to his beck and call whenever he felt the need? Well, because she wasn't as courageous as everyone thought her to be, and she couldn't let herself let him go, with some sort of delusion that one day, maybe, he'd finally see her the way she wanted him to see her, and love her the way she loved him.

Who knows? Maybe one day?

~.~

**AN: Aw, poor Lisanna :( I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you guys next time around! As always, I apologize for any mistakes that may show up...I do go through each chapter 2 to 3 times to catch any and all spelling/grammar issues, but I tend to get used to what I'm reading and miss some things. I hope these things don't sneak up and bite me in the butt later on...**


	6. Obsessions

**AN: As always, thanks for support, and here's the next chapter. I also don't own the characters.**

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Chapter 6 - Obsessions

Lucy had spent her whole Saturday hunched over her computer, reading every article and rumor and forum thread post she could find on the mysterious explosion in Oak Town that happened a year prior. She still wasn't sure why those three men reminded her of it in the first place, but she was going to dig until she found what she was looking for, or wait until her fingers were just bloody stumps that rotted away from the proverbial dirt she was digging through. Levy was helping her for the first half of the day, but she quickly became bored and shut herself in her room with a cup of coffee and a book - a much more viable way to waste a Saturday, in her eyes.

Besides, Levy didn't even know what it was she was looking for. Well, neither did Lucy, but that didn't mean she would give up halfway through.

There were a few things she learned from her research though:

First, the explosion erupted from a large research building - Elemental Environments - whose purpose was creating ways to save the Earthland from global warming, animal extinction prevention, ozone layer research…in summary, they were a bunch of smart, chemistry hippies trying to save the planet from the destructive force of humans. Lucy had a friend who used to work in that facility before being transferred to Magnolia right before the explosion, so she planned on asking her questions.

Second, the explosion happened in a tight security area of the facility where only higher ranking members were given access to. In the many conspiracy blogs she found, there were rumors of them creating more than just solutions to a better Earthland, but weapons to help wipe out the human population, but those theories were quickly put to rest when everyone realized that not even their security guards carried weapons of any kind - not even batons, which was odd. _They must have been really trusting in the human race that they deemed so evil, believing no one would sneak in and cause something catastrophic like, oh I don't know, an explosion that nearly wipes out an entire city?_

And third, the investigations denied any terrorist activity. It was labeled an accident caused by someone accidentally mixing two gases together, no one really knowing what would happen when said gases were mixed - well, now they know.

So why did that explosion pop in her head the moment she laid eyes upon those mysterious men? She couldn't just push her instinct aside when it was clearly telling her there was more to it than just an accident? Or maybe her life was just so boring that she was making up something big out of something small? Maybe they actually didn't have anything to do with Oak Town, and her mind just wanted her to go crazy with a new hobby? Why couldn't she just be amazed that they were there, in the flesh, wearing masks and doing crazy things with ice, metal, and fire? As if superhumans weren't amazing enough, she had to find some sort of conspiracy to go along with it.

_Why, brain? Why?!_

She groaned and let her head fall on her desk, pounding her forehead on the wood, making everything jump with the force.

In all honesty, she couldn't get that man out of her head since he left her so suddenly the previous evening. Though she did take a minute to call Jason, just to make sure he was okay. He was fine, and he couldn't stop talking about the amazing shots of the trio he took, and couldn't wait to show her on Monday when they get back to work. She was curious as well, but, taking the advice of Levy, tried to stay home and enjoy her weekend off. Levy sometimes told her she was a workaholic, which she couldn't agree more. Lucy loved her job, and she wouldn't trade it for the world, but she did get a little carried away with it. Did she see herself as editor in chief one day? Maybe, but that day was far off from the present, and she was contented to just show up at work in the mornings, write her articles, and go home in the evening, just to repeat everything the next day.

She groaned as Salamander's onyx eyes flashed in her mind again. The memory of his swift kiss still ingrained in her memory it still felt like his warm lips were against hers, even though it only lasted for a split second in reality. During the night she couldn't help but ask herself why he chose her. She had remembered seeing him performing earlier in the week, and she could have sworn he had his eyes on her even then, but that didn't mean that he suddenly had an interest in her, did it? Well, she was no stranger to secret admirers, men who she's never even actually met before, but worked in the same building, or lived in the same apartment. Those "secret admirers" were the main reason Levy was always so concerned for her whereabouts and outside activities. Who knows? Maybe one day one of those admirers could turn into a creepy stalker, and possibly kidnap her and do dirty things to her in his sleazy bedroom littered with candid pictures of herself.

Lucy would joke that she'd might actually enjoy finally getting some action in her lonely, single girl life, but deep down she agreed with Levy's concerns, and tried to do a few things to make sure she could take care of herself. She took defense classes, had a concealed weapon license, and kept a can of pepper spray in her purse. She was prepared for any attacker.

Except Salamander. He had managed to wiggle his way passed her mental defenses, preventing her from remembering that she wasn't totally defenseless, and gotten closer to her than any man had since her early days in college. She wasn't a stranger to heartbreak, and she wasn't as desperate for a companion like Levy was, but she still couldn't believe she let that masked man get so close to her without a second thought about her own morals!

She gave her desk one last, really hard thump, which was a mistake. She jumped up and held her hand over her forehead, vigorously rubbing, only making the red mark more noticeable.

Upon hearing the loud noise, Levy ran out of her room, not quite sure what to expect. Her mind had been running wild as soon as she heard the thump. Was it an intruder? Had Lucy finally collapsed from exhaustion? Upon seeing her friend holding her head, she assumed the latter. Sighing, Levy walked to the kitchen to pour a glass of water.

"Lu, why don't you take a break?" She grabbed Lucy's hand and forced the glass in her grasp. "Seriously. You've been obsessing over this thing all day, and do you still know what you're looking for?"

"Levy, it's just minor curiosity." She took a sip of the water, suddenly realizing how dry her throat really was. "I mean, the explosion from yesterday just brought the subject to light, and I wanted to know what happened. That's all."

"Uh huh." Levy walked back to their shared couch, and dropped herself on it, groaning as her body settled into the soft fabric. They both agreed: the best couch in the world was sitting in their living room. "And in your digging, did anyone post anything about the incident last night?"

Lucy puffed her reddening cheeks and turned back to her computer. She had called her boss last night, but he immediately refused to let her write a breaking story on it. She didn't think it was fair, since, after all, she was right in the middle of the action! However, her boss said no, and she had to comply, but she didn't have to like it. Though she did find it weird that her boss actually said no to her. Normally, the person first on the scene would be the one responsible for writing the story. Oh no. He didn't give it to Jason, did he? He wasn't even a bonafide writer, just a photographer. There someone else there, someone else who beat her to it.

Taking a deep breath, she felt her anger and jealousy from the previous night rekindle.

"Hey, Luce? It is almost six. Want go get those drinks that we promised ourselves?" Lucy turned to her friend. Levy stood up and stretched. "Come on. Go get dressed. We'll go out for a bite to eat and see if anyone's at that new place down the street."

Lucy sighed and agreed with her friend, actually looking forward to a fun night on the town. Lord knew she needed it after her last forty-eight hours. She turned back to her computer, and shut it off. She'd return to it in the morning, probably go look and see who took her story. But, for now, everything _needed _to be forgotten. She _had _to enjoy herself. A certain pink haired mystery man was _not _going to meander his way into her thoughts.


	7. Drunk In Love

**AN: Well, I am sorry about how Natsu is currently acting, but it is for a reason. So, let me clarify a few things (without spoiling anything for later). First off, everyone in this story is over the age of 25, which means they've all grown up a bit. Obviously they aren't all going to act like they do in the manga/anime. Also, this _is_ an AU story, in which other things have happened in the characters' pasts that molded them to be who they are now, and they can only continue to grow and develop as their stories become intertwined. Thirdly, nowhere did I say this was a fluff story….so if that's what you're expecting then you're definitely reading the wrong story. And lastly, in the case of Natsu...we only saw Lisanna's side of the story, her own thoughts on the matter. Don't be so quick to judge Natsu when you don't really know what's going on in his head.**

**Now then, if that angered you more, then I'm not going to stop you from not reading...but it will sadden me that you guys didn't give him a chance. For those of you who are still here, thank you for your support. :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail, but I am appreciative that we are able to take their lives and throw them into turmoil, just for pure entertainment. Thank God for the world of fanfiction.**

Chapter 7 - Drunk in Love

Levy audibly groaned when Lucy announced who'd be joining them for dinner, which surprised Lucy - she thought Levy liked Juvia. However, for the sake of Lucy's current curiosity topic, she needed Juvia.

"Levy, I thought you liked Juvia?"

"I do! But, sometimes she can be a bit of a downer, and I really don't think you need that right now."

Dinner had been pleasant, and the girls spent the two hours catching up. They hadn't seen Juvia in almost a month, and even Levy was enjoying the conversation. Juvia used to work at the Oak Town branch of Elemental Environments, studying the declining tree population of the rainforests. She'd been working on creating her own thunderstorms before the accident. Luckily for her, she had been on a business trip when the explosion happened, but she had lost almost all her research, and when she was transferred to Magnolia, she had to start over.

"It's been a nightmare this last year," she had been saying. "At first it was hard to cope. All those years of research just gone in an instant. And not to mention I lost all my colleagues, so I had to start over by myself." No one in Magnolia had even begun to understand the progress she had before the accident, and it had driven her to working alone.

Levy and Lucy could feel the depressing atmosphere clouding their dinner, so Levy quickly changed the subject.

"So, Juvia, did you hear about what happened on Friday?"

"A little, not much. I tend to not really care for the news of the outside world, unless it involves rain. I've only heard bits from the others in my lab. Someone lit a car on fire and it exploded?"

Lucy shook her head. "It was much more than that." She told Juvia about her experience, and filled in the gaps with what Jason had told her over the phone later. "They grabbed the guy and flew off." She blushed as she remembered her own encounter with one of the trio, but she kept that part to herself. "Can you believe that there's people like that in Magnolia?"

"What are they?" Juvia asked, grabbing her things as they were planning on moving from the quiet restaurant to proceed with their plans to find a place to relieve the stress on their lives by drowning them in alcohol. "Are they superheroes?"

"They sure seemed like it." Lucy was the last of the trio to leave the restaurant, thinking about the chaste kiss The Salamander gave her before leaving her in such a flashy way. If they were superheroes, then did that mean the man that they took was villain? But he hadn't done anything for them to attack him. And then there was that kiss. Did heroes just randomly kiss people they just met? Not any that she's heard of, that's for sure.

As they made their way down the street to the club they were going to, Juvia slowed her steps, suddenly feeling nervous about their plan. Lucy and Levy gave her a questioning look.

"I'll be honest," Juvia whispered, "I haven't been in a social scene for over a year, and I'm not sure if I'll be enjoyable company."

Levy placed her hand on Juvia's arm, smiling warmly at her. "Juvia, you've been nothing but enjoyable since we started the night. As soon as you get something to drink, you'll be able to loosen up and have fun. Maybe even meet a guy?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Levy, I sure hope you find a guy, because I'm a little tired of hearing you and your romantic fantasies." She smiled at her friend's bright red face. "I'll even help you. I plan on enjoying a quiet night at home, so I'll make sure you find a man."

Juvia and Lucy laughed at their friend's expense, Juvia finding her courage to walk into such a highly sociable environment that was the club. They flashed their ID's to the bouncer at the door, and made their way through the dancing crowd to find an empty spot by the bar. They ordered their drinks, and Lucy immediately began scanning the crowd for an eligible bachelor for her timid, romantic obsessed friend.

Apparently it was a throwback night in the music department, since the DJ was playing songs that Lucy hadn't heard in nearly ten years. She loved the energy of the people dancing around her, the music and the lights pulsing with the beat of the song. Without another thought, she grabbed her friends and pulled them in the middle of the dance floor, and started dancing. Her friends didn't need much pushing to join her. She watched as her friends moved to dance with a couple guys that were nearby, and they guys had no problem being taken over by their little bodies rubbing against them.

Lucy kept her eyes close on her friends, not wanting to lose sight of them. Sure they were all having fun and dancing, but she still wanted to make sure they were okay. Let them have fun, and she'll be the worrier for once.

Levy loved to dance; it had been so long and she had closed her eyes and let the music move through her. Who was she dancing with? She didn't know, but she did know that he was probably there for the same reason she was - to lose herself and have fun. Lucy wanted her to find a man, but Levy had much more important things on her mind. Sure, she was a romantic at heart, but she also wasn't completely blinded by the idea of a romance. She knew that nothing in real life could be as wonderful as in her books, but she couldn't help but dream. She knew no man could give her exactly what she wanted - the excitement she'd read about in her books, the pleasure the men always seemed to bring out of their women, the screaming orgasms. She had such a high standard of man that she wouldn't be able to just be happy with Mr. Joe Schmoe.

She had happily been dancing with the same partner for about twenty minutes before he left her. She didn't care; she could dance all on her own. She looked around to spot her friends drinking and laughing with each other at a table not far from where she was. As long as she had Lucy and Juvia in her sight, she'd be okay. She did still have a promise to keep, and she wasn't going to break that promise just because she let herself get distracted by the music.

The song that was playing had come to an end, and the DJ announced his break time, and he left his place, letting another person take his place, and this new person played a slow song. Declining a dance from a man who had been dancing near her, she made her way to her friends' table, grabbing the green drink Lucy had pushed toward her.

Taking a sip of the sweet fruity drink, she almost choked. She smiled at her blonde friend. "This could be dangerous," she mumbled as she took another sip.

Lucy raised her own glass in agreement. "That's the point, Levy, dear. You brought me out here to do just this, and you will not be immune."

The three girls cheered, and thirty minutes later, they each found themselves on the dance floor again, dancing to some sort of techno music, and they knew they were probably making fools out of themselves, having gotten a little buzzed on those stupid fruity drinks.

Levy was dancing with Lucy, putting on a show for a couple guys watching them a little ways from her drunken haze, Levy could feel herself becoming a little needy as she danced against Lucy, drinking in those dark gazes from the men they danced for. She wasn't drunk enough to be out of control of her actions, but she was drunk enough to have the courage to grind against her friend, silently promising a good time to the man who watched her.

The men walked up to them, Levy's excitement rising the closer they came. The girls broke apart and went to their respective partners, everyone letting the music and alcohol move their bodies as if there were no minds controlling their moves. Levy danced with her back to her partner, not really noticing his appearance - what he was wearing, what he looked like - and it didn't really matter to her whether he was there or not.

A giggle made its way to her ears over the music, and Levy looked around to see Lucy enjoying her dance with her partner. Smiling at her friend having fun, Levy finally decided to pay attention to the man she was dancing with. She turned in his arms and put her arms around his neck. He started talking with her, and she replied to his questions, but the back and forth jarble that the man called conversation suddenly seemed to sober her. She felt herself becoming increasingly bored, and just wanted to dance. She closed her eyes, cutting off any talking, and turned her back to him again, which he didn't seem to mind in the least. He was just another pretty face to look at, but nothing cranking the motor inside.

Lucy interrupted their dance, Juvia standing next to her, her face redder than a tomato.

"I think we need to take Juvia outside," Lucy whispered. "She's had at least four more drinks in the last thirty minutes."

Levy turned to her partner, and he shrugged. "Can't be helped," he said.

The girls made their way out of the club, getting hit by the cool night air, immediately calming their nerves, the energy from inside the club being left in the club. They found a quiet spot away from the crowd - the line of people waiting to get in - and Levy immediately leaned against the brick wall, the cool of the stone against her bare back calming her nerves. Lucy held onto Juvia as the woman groaned, resting her forehead on the wall next to Levy.

"I just wanted to say," Juvia said breathily, "that this is the most fun I've had in a long time." She looked up at the two and smiled. "Thank you for inviting me."

Lucy patted Juvia on the back. "It's always good to see you Juvia. Even though you don't know how to hold onto your alcohol, you're still fun to be around."

To prove Lucy's point, Juvia hiccuped, and put her forehead back on the wall, afraid her stomach was about to jump out of her mouth.

"I think it's time for us to go," Lucy mumbled. "You can stay at our place tonight, Juvia."

The other girl smiled. "I think I might just do that," she whispered.

Levy pushed off the wall. "I'll go pay the tab. Wait for me."

Lucy waved Levy off, and Levy made her way back into the crowded club. She was a little disappointed that they were leaving so soon, but it couldn't be helped. She had to maneuver her way through the dancing bodies to get to the bar. The electricity of the atmosphere charged through her, and she felt like it was pulling her back into the fray. It had been too long since she was able to let loose like she had tonight, but she was an adult now, and her priorities had changed since her days in college.

Handing the bartender her card, she sighed and placed her chin on her folded hands that rested on the countertop. She wasn't very tall, so she didn't have to bend down too far to accomplish this, but her butt did stick out a little, which she was completely aware of, and she probably should have known that someone would take advantage of the situation and grab her rump, but it still shocked her nonetheless. Her face darkened in angry embarrassment, and she stood up straight and turned to confront whoever grabbed her. She wasn't surprised to see the man she was dancing with, smirking at her.

"I was wondering where you ran off to," he said. He pulled her against him so she could feel how excited he was to have her back. "What do you say we ditch this place and head to a hotel?"

She rolled her eyes and pushed against him. "I don't think so, sweetheart." She stepped to move around him, but he grabbed her arm.

"Let me rephrase that," he said, roughly pulling her against him again. "Let's go."

Levy clenched her teeth, really not wanting to let loose on this loser and show him exactly what happened when she was underrated and taken advantage of as a short person, but she never got the chance. The man was pulled away from her and thrown a few feet away, falling into someone, who immediately got angry and started punching the guy who was thrown into him.

Levy blinked and stared up at the man who threw the other off her. He stood a few feet taller than her - the top her head had to only reach his shoulders. His muscular arms were crossed in front of his chest, and, despite the menacing look of his facial features - various piercings on his nose, chin, and eyebrows - the amused smile he gave the fight happening behind him made him look like a regular, respectable guy. His long hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he kept his bangs out of his face with a cloth wrapped on his forehead. He popped his knuckles, about ready to join in the brawl, but Levy reached out and grabbed his arm. She didn't know why, and was at a loss for words when he looked down at her and raised an eyebrow.

She could have handled that guy herself, so she didn't really need this man's help, but she found she couldn't stand up for herself under his gaze. Her mouth hung open as she tried to think of something to say, suddenly blaming her inability to speak and the sudden attraction she felt toward the man on the alcohol. Maybe she was as drunk as Juvia? She closed her mouth, suddenly afraid that she might vomit all over the man if her mouth was open long enough.

The man leaned down so he was eye level with her, and oh so close in proximity. She felt her mouth watering and she had to swallow.

"Are you okay?" he asked. He backed up slightly and inspected her, his eyes gazing up and down her body, causing her to blush and cringe as she could almost physically _feel _his eyes touching her as he looked at her. When his eyes travelled back up to hers, she suddenly felt like she had forgotten how to breathe, and she took a deep breath so she didn't pass out.

Her eyes locked on his mouth, and she couldn't help her mind wander to how those lips would feel against her own.

"Oh, I'm fine," she breathed out. She looked back up at his eyes and saw amusement there. _What are you doing, Levy?_ she berated herself. She felt her hand reach up and gently finger his piercing on his chin, and smiled triumphantly when he closed his eyes and, through the pounding of the music, she could hear a soft growl sound in the bottom of his throat. He instinctively moved closer to her, and she let him, not freaking out in the least when he gently placed his lips against hers. He probably didn't mean to do it, he was just entranced by her fingers on his piercing, but he didn't move away, and neither did she.

Levy knew she was drunk. She wrapped her arms around the man's neck and pulled him tighter against her. No way would she willingly do this with a stranger she just met. She hadn't even properly met him, yet, and she was sucking on his face, and he was letting her. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Levy?!"

She gasped and pulled away from him, putting her hand to her mouth. What was she doing? Lucy's shrill voice pulled her out of her drunken haze, and she was finally able to come to her senses. She looked up at the man, who only smirked down at her. Lucy grabbed her arm and started pulling her away, Levy unable to do anything at the moment.

"Thank you, very much!" the man called out as the girls exited the club. He cracked his knuckles again, and turned back to the fight, disappointed that it had died down.

Lucy shoved her friend in the backseat of the cab next to Juvia, and took her place in the front. As the driver pulled away, she turned around and glared at Levy.

"What the hell were you doing? Did you know that guy?"

Levy could only shake her head. She didn't know him, but he somehow felt so familiar to her. She could have swore that she had seen him before, but no matter how hard she thought about it, she was only drawing a blank. She didn't even know his name.

Later that night, as she lay in her bed, she couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. She wasn't the type of girl to just walk up to someone and kiss them, especially when they tried to show their dominance by butting into her business. Again, though, there was that nagging feeling like she had seen him somewhere before. She groaned and shoved her face in her pillow, already feeling the hangover headache growing quicker than normal, since she was thinking so hard about the man at the club.

~.~

**AN: Woo for longish chapter...longer than the others...Well, now that it's finished, you know what to do! Fave/follow/review, and there will be another update in the near future. 3**


	8. Meeting the Boss

Chapter 8 - Meeting the Boss

Lucy sighed as she laid her head down on her desk. She rolled her pen around, a little dejectedly. Her eyes move up to stare at the picture Jason had given her earlier that morning. Unfortunately he was only able to get two of the three in the picture - the ice man and the metal man; at least that's what she's come to call them. The metal man had the unconscious perpetrator over his shoulder, and both men were giving her scowling looks, obviously not happy about having their picture taken.

But the one she was interested in was missing. Where was he? Did Jason take that picture while Salamander met her in the alley? She blushed when she remembered the encounter - again, for the umpteenth time - and she sat up, her back straightening.

She had managed to get her hands on the article that was written about what happened Friday, but, during the whole story, not once were the three men mentioned. She grit her teeth at the aggravation, knowing someone else had written the story and had almost absolutely no idea what actually happened! She didn't know the person who had written it, but he - his name was Max Alors - squandered the good name of the reporter, telling a false story to cover up a more pressing one. Then again, in what world were three extraordinary men too explicit for the public than a possible terrorist attack? It was people like him that made the public distrust the media, and, as a fellow reporter, she was positively disgusted. Who paid that moron off to tell a lie?

She let out an audible growl as she took the closest piece of paper and crumbled it up, pretending it was that garbage she had read earlier that morning. She had angrily crumbled that paper up as well, but she wasn't satisfied doing it only once.

Standing up from her desk, she set out on a mission, locating a copy of that morning's paper, just so she could crumble it and throw it in the trash. Her fists were clenched as she blindly rounded a corner, her body running into a solid form. She stumbled back, grabbing onto whatever she could to prevent her from falling. However, what she had grabbed onto wasn't stable, and she stumbled back, taking the thing with her. Her back crashed onto the opposite wall, and she was squashed by the figure she had grabbed. She let out a slight yelp as the bigger mass crashed into her.

"I'm sorry, are you okay?"

She groaned as the person pushed off her, and she immediately rubbed her back, her eyes closed in pain.

"I'm fine," the man who crashed into her said.

She opened her eyes and her gaze fell upon a tall man in a black suit - much too fancy for anyone who worked there to be wearing. He pulled at the jacket, straightening it out, and he glared down at her with piercing blue eyes. She sucked in a sharp breath as her eyes fell upon a tattoo under his eye.

"Mr. Fernandes?" she whispered. Oh no. Out of anyone in the entire world she could have crashed into, she just _had _to crash into her boss. Now the suit made sense.

He was the type of boss who never actually had anything to do with the paper, more like he put his money into everything, and he ruled over them all with an iron fist; and he held 80% of the stock. He was rich, and he liked to flaunt it to the world.

And Lucy had crashed into him. She was so fired.

Two short men crowded around him, fussing over his well-being, but he just kept his intense gaze on her. She could feel herself blushing under his scrutiny. Probably thinking about the best way to kick her ass to the curb. She bit her lip. She couldn't be fired. This paper was her life! She wouldn't know what to do with herself if she was to be fired. She couldn't work for another paper - there was no other paper in Magnolia. She'd have to leave town, start a new job with a new name - no one would hire her after word got around that she was fired because she was careless and injured her boss in a head-on collision.

Okay, so he wasn't injured - if anything, he injured her - but once rumors started, they just kept getting worse until they were thrown so out of proportion that they bordered on impossible and insane. Only the airheads believed them at that point.

Oh, shit. Lucy's life was going to become an airhead's tale, and she'd have to live the rest of her life in a dark, dank studio apartment, surrounded by thirty cats.

Tears formed in her eyes, and she couldn't stop herself from jumping forward and grabbing her boss's jacket.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried. "Please don't fire me! It was my fault for not looking where I was going."

"You're damn right it's your fault," one of the men accused, pointing a fat finger at her. She backed away from the man, letting go of Mr. Fernandes. "If you had been paying any attention to your surroundings, instead of having your empty head in the clouds, you'd have noticed Mr. Fernandes standing there."

Lucy squeaked. The little short, fat man was right. She was too devastated about being fired to understand reason.

"Kelso." The little group jumped as their boss spoke. The two short men and Lucy hadn't expected him to say anything, and hearing his voice had shocked them. She pressed herself farther into the wall, wanting to disappear. Here it comes. She clenched her eyes shut. "I was just as much at fault as she was."

Her eyes snapped open. She and the two men looked up at him, gawking at his soft smile. He wasn't glaring at her anymore. What's going on? He's supposed to fire her, physically pick her up and throw her out the closest window and watch and laugh maniacally as she plummeted to her journalism death.

He stepped up to her and patted her head. "Are you hurt?"

She shook her head, unable to get the look of shock off her face.

He nodded. "Try to be more careful, okay?" With that, he turned around and went down the hallway, his two lackeys following him.

She didn't know what to do. She had heard horror stories about that man that could curl Freddy Krueger's toes...and he just let her off, scott free. She practically pummeled the guy!

Okay, don't dwell on it. She shrugged it off, not wanting to questing good fortune. She had to go back to her desk before he changed his mind and came back, rethinking his decision. She'd have to go on her quest to destroy the article some other time. She had a job to do, and, after that close call, she was determined to make sure she worked hard enough that it'd be impossible to fire her.

~.~

The day passed without further incident. Lucy sat at her desk after her run-in with her boss, trying to look like she was working her ass off. In truth, she actually sat at her desk, surrounded by her Oak Town articles. She wasn't really doing anything, but she knew surrounding herself by paper made other people think she was doing something productive, and the Oak Town papers were the only papers she had at her disposal.

"Lucy?"

Lucy turned around and smiled at her blue-haired friend.

"Are you ready to leave?"

Lucy nodded. "Let me just pack my things. I'll meet you by the elevators." As Levy walked off, Lucy sat up in her chair, stretching her arms above her head. She hadn't moved since the run in with her boss, and her body had stiffened. She rolled her head back and forth, revelling in the joints popping. She sighed happily as she brought her arms back down, and she gave her papers one last once over.

Until she noticed something she hadn't before. On one of the sheets hidden under her computer mouse, a name popped out, seemingly brighter and bolder than any of the other words surrounding it.

Jellal Fernandes.

She grabbed the page and held it up closer so she could read it. The boss's name was involved in her Oak Town research? How had she missed that?

_Jellal Fernandes, a member of the board, reaches out to the friends and family members of the victims of the Environment Elemental Research facility._

Then again, it was so brief that she didn't question the fact that she missed it at first. However...a member of the board? Not only was he the president of the Magnolia Media group, he was also on the board at Elemental Environments. Everyone in the world knew this guy was rich, but he was a philanthropist.

"What are you reading there?"

Lucy jumped at the deep voice sounding behind her. She dropped her paper, standing up from her chair. The smiling face of the boss she's been fretting about all day. She had heard nothing good about him, and he was now standing in front of her, at her desk, and everyone else in the office was gone.

He was going to fire her. This it. Good-bye, Magnolia Times. Life here was wonderful. They had a good run. Stinky studio apartment and thirty cats, here she comes.

"Uh, just reading about the explosion at Oak Town last year." She shrugged.

He nodded and glanced at all the papers behind her. "Quite a heartbreaking event. All those lives lost, all because of an ignorant mistake made by the researchers."

"Right, accident," she mumbled. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Actually-"

"Please don't fire me," she interrupted in a rush. "I didn't mean to run into you. I was just furious about that article written over the weekend. I mean how could someone just fabricate the truth to make the masses happy? I didn't come to this paper just so we could bend the truth. I mean, who in their right mind would allow that?"

"I did."

Lucy froze and blinked at him, both embarrassed for ranting, and furious that he admitted to lying.

"Think about," he said, folding his arms over his chest, "what do you think the people of Magnolia would believe more? If we wrote about those men-" he nodded toward the picture leaning against Lucy's monitor, "-then we'd get more negative publicity and reputation than the the story we printed."

Lucy blinked at her blue-haired boss. What was he saying? He was the one who allowed that trash to be printed? How could he do that? The truth was so much more eye-opening about the world than what was printed. Three men with superpowers got into a magical fight in the middle of the street...and blew up a whole city block.

Okay, granted, if she were a normal person, reading that story, she would question the honesty of the paper. But that wasn't the issue! At least it was the truth.

"So you only care about selling papers and making money?" Lucy asked him, placing her hands on her hips. "You don't really care about making sure the people of Magnolia know what's actually going on in their city? Was everything about Oak Town just rubbish as well?"

The boss smirked at her. "Tell you what," he whispered, leaning closer to her. "Meet me for dinner and I'll let you in on a little secret about Oak Town."

She felt a shiver run up and down her spine. There was a nagging voice in the back of her head telling her that it was bad idea. Not only was this her boss - office romance was strictly a no-no - but this was also the man who squandered everything she believed in about the press.

She opened her mouth to say no, but he interrupted her.

"I think my back's starting to spasm from our crashing into each other earlier. If I'm injured, I'll be forced to take action. My subordinates will want me to do something about it."

Lucy groaned. She was quickly starting to dislike her boss. He was pretty much making her go to dinner by threatening her job. Wasn't that blackmail? Wasn't that kind of illegal?

Oh well, it was just one dinner. What's that, like, two to three hours? And she'd get to learn something about Oak Town. Hopefully that secret he was teasing about was something worth three hours of her time.

Sighing, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine."

He scoffed victoriously, and flicked her chin. "Cheer up. It could be the dinner of your life. I'll see you tomorrow at six." With that said, he turned and left.

She groaned. The dinner of her life? Highly unlikely. She glanced behind her to look at the picture again. Nothing would compare to that night.

~.~

**AN: It's getting harder for me to find time to write. ;_; Every time I get on the computer my hubby starts complaining that me being on my computer is killing our internet (we have sucky wireless...). BUT! I managed to get this one out...finally! I've figured out which direction this story is going after I finish the first bits...Review, follow, and fave, if you haven't already, and I'll get the next installment up asap.**


	9. Evil in the Streets

Chapter 9 - Evil in the City

"_It's alive...It's alive!" _

Lisanna shoves another mouthful of noodles into her mouth, her eyes wide as she watches the monster crawl off the table and attack the doctor. She never was a lover of horror flicks, but for some reason she just felt in the mood to watch something scary. She was told this was the most non-scary scary-movie ever in existence, so she figured it was safe.

There was a sudden loud beeping noise next to her, and she jumped and spilled her noodle soup on the floor. Her heart pounded on her chest, her eyes widened, and she mourned her lunch on the floor. Glaring at the annoying beeping sound on her computer next to her, but all fear and anger vanished as she stared at the message on her screen.

_**Target acquired.**_

She gasped and immediately turned the movie off, her lunch forgotten. If what her computer was telling her, the man had been spotted. Finally, after a year of searching. She hurriedly typed away on her computer, and a fuzzy picture popped up. She had a hard time making out the image, but the blue hair was unmistakable. He had finally made his presence in Magnolia known.

She grabbed her computer and rushed out of her room. She quickly made her way to the master's office, ducking and dodging passers-by - luckily for her everyone knew that there could only be one reason she could be in such a hurry, and they happily moved out of her way.

The master was alone in his office, and as soon as Lisanna forced her way through the door, he quickly picked his head off the desk, pretending he wasn't just taking a nap but actually doing important master work. He shuffled a few papers on his desk as Lisanna put her computer down in front of him.

His eyes widened as he looked at the picture.

"It's terrible quality," he mumbled. He looked up at the girl, his eyes hardening. "But it's him, no doubt about it. Get your sister and call everyone back. We need a plan of attack."

Lisanna nodded, grabbing a paper and a pen off his desk, taking notes as he spouted orders at her.

"Find out his schedule for the next couple of days if you can," he continued. "Make sure to keep it on the down low. We don't want him to get scared and disappear on us again." He jumped from his chair and made his way out the office, Lisanna following close behind. A thought came to him and he stopped short, Lisanna almost running into him. He turned around and motioned with his hand for her to lean close to him. "And make sure Erza does not find out about this until we have our plan laid out," he whispered.

Lisanna nodded in agreement and wrote that on a paper. Master continued on his way, and Lisanna followed.

~.~

Lucy was in a daze as she walked home. Only moments before she was asked out to dinner by her boss. The worse part was that she accepted! Sure it was for information, but it was information on something that seemed so silly now. She groaned audibly. Why had everything been so crazy for her in the last few days? All she wanted was to live a quiet life, working at the newspaper.

She sighed to herself, thankful she sent Levy ahead of her. She wanted to tell her friend about her day, but, at the same time, she really didn't. Besides, Levy had something else on her mind - trailing off in the middle of a sentence as she gazes off into the distance, and she'd start humming a song that Lucy could have sworn they heard when they went to the club. Not to mention Levy mentioned going back to that club sometime very soon.

Obviously the bluenette had other things to occupy herself. The last thing she needed was more of Lucy's crazy life that seemed to change dramatically within the last few days.

Lucy adjusted the plastic bag she was carrying, wrapping the handle on her wrist. She used the grocery store as an excuse to get some thinking time to herself. Though, as she suddenly started taking in her surroundings, she realized she had taken too much time at the store and walking home that she didn't notice the sun was setting. Cursing her brilliantly active mind, she started hurrying home.

"Where's a tasty morsel like you headed in such a hurry?"

Lucy groaned as a man stepped in her way. She really wasn't in the mood for a random mugging. The man would present himself as some super scary predator, and she would pretend to be small and helpless...and then as soon as the man would advance on her, she'd surprise him with her self-defense skills and kick his ass.

Now then, to play the small and helpless damsel.

She gasped, putting her fist against her mouth in mock horror, making the man smirk wider. He began to slowly walk towards her, trying to intimidate her. She wasn't scared in the least. In fact, she was looking forward to taking all her frustrations out on some creep. She suddenly really wanted to punch something, and this man just happened to be the one she wanted to hit.

She took a shaky step back, shaking her head.

"I can't stop thinking about the things I want to do to you, lovely lady." He cackled and Lucy wanted to throw up. Of all the men hitting on her in the last couple of weeks, this one, by far, made her the most excited. She wanted to punch that disgusting smirk off his face so bad she couldn't stop her fists from clenching. Not that she enjoyed being taken advantage of, she just really wanted to hit someone.

"Oh please, no," she begged in a high pitched voice.

The man continued his throaty cackle as he got closer. He was almost to her when she lifted her arm, ready to hit him square in the nose…

When he suddenly fell to the ground, groaning loudly, a large mass of body landing on top of him. Lucy shrieked and jumped back, dropping her groceries.

A pink-haired man smiled at her, completely unfazed by the fact that he was standing on a man's back. His masked seemingly glowed in the low light of the sunset. He rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, hello again."

Lucy stared wide-eyed at her dinner on the ground, her mouth open in surprise. She was going to make her special prime rib for her and Levy. Oh no, not now. The meat had fallen in a conveniently placed puddle. Her dinner was ruined! She glared at the man, but her face immediately softened as his eyes stared at her in concern.

She was obviously in shock in being taken advantage of - well, almost. Luckily for her he had just happened to be passing by.

"Why are you here?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I can't just stand by and watch a helpless woman being taken advantage of."

"I had everything under control," she said as she bent down to pick up the mess, placing the ruined food back in the bag. Nothing was edible, but that didn't mean she had to leave the mess on the ground.

"It didn't look like that from where I was sitting." He stepped off the man's back, grinning as the man groaned in an unconscious sleep. "Do you want some help?"

She stood, and crossed her arms over her chest. The awkwardness of their previous meeting seemed so far away, and she didn't seem so nervous around him.

"How kind of you to ask, after the fact that I finished cleaning up the mess." She glanced down at the unconscious man behind Salamander. "And how kind of you ask at all." She put her hands on her hips.

He smiled at her and stepped even closer. She didn't budge as he crept closer to her, but he also wasn't some slimeball creep from the street.

"Well?" He raised an eyebrow at her. She shook her head, not understanding what he was asking. He quietly laughed and leaned in, inches away from her. "I saved you. Don't I get a reward?"

Lucy smiled and shrugged. "Well, I was on my way home to make dinner, but it's been infested with dirt, so…"

"That's not what I meant." He placed his hands on her shoulders, gently pulling her to him. She couldn't help but tense as he grasped her, his hands sending warmth all through her body. She cursed herself, her sudden burst of courage deflated, and she felt herself giggle.

As soon as the offending sound came out of her mouth, she covered her mouth with her hand. Damn him and his mysteriously handsome eyes, his oddly colored hair, his charmingly goofy smile, his toned arms and chest…

_Lucy, you're drooling again…_

She shook herself. Why did he affect her so? She's never seen his full face and he's done nothing but come on to her since she first saw him.

He gently places his finger and thumb on her chin, lifting her face closer to his.

"W-what did you mean, then?" she breathed.

He smiled. "I think you know what I mean, Lucy." He brought their faces closer together. Lucy's heartbeat quickened, her mind going back to that kiss. Her eyelids became heavy and she let them fall.

"SALAMANDER! I FINALLY FOUND YOU!" The man let go of Lucy as he was tackled from the side. Lucy jumped back and couldn't help a shriek at the sudden disappearance of the form in front of her. She glanced down at him, laying on his stomach, a small cat on his back. She glanced around. So, there was a cat, but who called out just a moment ago?

Looking back at Salamander, she couldn't help but wonder how he was overpowered by such a small feline. _Is it...blue?_ She blinked. The sun had gone down fully now, so she wasn't so sure, but it sure looked blue. She glanced around again. Did someone throw the cat?

Salamander groaned which turned into a laugh. She looked back down at him, but jumped and shrieked again. There was a boy sitting on his back! Where did he come from? And where did that cat go?

The boy climbed off the man's back. "I've been looking all over for you!" the boy shouted. Salamander sat up. "I mean it. The Master has been ordering everyone back since lunch time. Do you hear me?" The boy grabbed Salamander's collar and shook the man. "I haven't eaten all day, you jerk!"

"All right, all right." Salamander gently pulled the boy off and stood up, smiling at Lucy. "It looks like our meeting has been cut short." He placed his arm around her shoulders, pulling her to him. "How about a rain check on my reward?" He nuzzled her cheek, causing her cheeks to blush bright red. How could he do something so vulgar in front of a child?

Glancing down, she gasped at the child staring at them, his eyes wide. He didn't need to be witnessing this! She stepped back from the man.

"You pig!" she shouted, throwing her bag full of dirty groceries at him. Without a second thought, she whirled around and continued on her way back to her apartment, grumbling.

The boy jumped happily as food fell from the bag. He grabbed the steak and hummed happily. It wasn't fish, but it was meat and he was hungry. Salamander blinked at her retreating form.

"Did she just call me a pig?" he asked, looking down to his companion. The boy had turned back into a cat and was rolling around in the plastic bag. "I don't understand," he mumbled.

The cat poked his head out of the bag. "Well, you do sometimes turn into a pig when you eat," his now squeaky voice said.

"But she hasn't seen me eat yet."

The cat did his best to shrug, and he jumped up onto Salamander's shoulder. "Let's go, Salamander," he squeaked. "Master isn't happy that you turned off your communicator, and so everyone has been out looking for you. Lisanna found the guy we've been looking for, but we couldn't start the meeting without you."

The man's face quickly went from confused to smug as the cat talked. He refrained from getting too excited, not wanting fire to erupt from his body and possibly burn the cat. "He's been found, eh?" His eyes glowed bright red as he smiled wide, showing his sharp canines. "About time he made an appearance. Guys like him can't stay hidden forever."

With that said, he conjured flames at his feet and took off into the sky, flying in the direction of the headquarters.


	10. Dinner With The Devil

Chapter 10 - Dinner with the Devil

The main hall was eerily quiet as everyone sat in wait, malice in their eyes as they were still digesting the news that the man they were searching for had been found. Each member had their own score to settle with their target, and each member was currently imagining their own brutal way to pay him back for what he did to them.

A loud crashing noise could be heard echoing throughout the hall, followed by Gray's very audible groan.

"'Bout time that empty headed moron showed up," he grumbled, crossing his arms over his naked chest. "Now we can finally get down to business."

The moron in question bounded through the main hall, shouting as loud as he could. "Where is he?! I'll burn that asshole until he's crispier than burnt bacon. By the time I'm done with him, he'll be begging for mercy."

"Natsu, sit down and shut up." A large hand grabbed hold off the overzealous pinkette and the man was forced onto the bench. The Master wiggled his nose as he retracted his arm back to where he sat at the bar.

A soft chuckling could be heard from two of his teammates as Natsu crossed his arms over his chest, huffing at being manhandled so roughly.

The Master stood on top of the wooden countertop of the bar. "I can't believe you made us wait all this time because you turned off your communicator," the old man scolded. Natsu looked away as his teammates chuckled slightly louder. "We'll discuss that later, however." He cleared his throat, quieting any stray noise that might have risen, and he was quickly met with the silence that filled the hall only moments before.

The Master glanced at Lisanna at his side for a moment before beginning.

"As you may have heard, our target was spotted earlier today in the Magnolia Media Group building." A large projected image appeared behind him of their target.

Natsu clenched his fists and fought the urge to destroy the table he was sitting at. He's was just there, himself, and he didn't even notice that evil bastard was in the same vicinity as he was. How could he miss that? He kept his mouth shut, however, not needing anyone else to know that he missed the target.

"There is no set information on exactly how long he'll be in town, where he's physically staying, or if we'll even see him again," the Master continued. "I currently have a mole at the building right now, as we speak, and the last I heard our target is scheduled to make a few more appearances within the next couple of weeks. It seems our man has been pretty busy, buying the company, running the company from parts unknown. What my contact is going to try and find out is if he has business anywhere else in town, or in neighboring towns. He isn't going to get away from us as easily as he did before."

A loud thud was heard, and Natsu stood from his seat. He had been unable to hold in his anger any longer, and punched the table.

"So where is he now?" the younger man shouted. "There's no way he knows we're here. Let's find out where that bastard lives and let's kick his ass before he even has a chance to wake up from his soft, cozy bed! Where's Erza? I'm sure she'll agree with me! Erza!"

The people around Natsu scattered as Master's enormous fist squished the pinkette to the floor.

"For obvious reasons," the Master said, the weight of his fist keeping Natsu pinned to the ground, "Erza left earlier on an urgent mission that will take at least a few days to accomplish." He retracted his hand. "Naturally I want to capture him before she returns. I want to at least have a chat with him before she kills him. Which brings me to what I have planned." The projection behind him shut off. "Normally he's surrounded by his body guards, but I was informed that he has dinner plans for tomorrow night, in which he'll be alone; or, without his bodyguards, at least. I want him taken from the restaurant. Without his bodyguards, there will, hopefully, be less chance of major damage. We were lucky to get by with some flimsy story about the explosion last week, but I don't know how lucky we'll be next time."

The Master sighed as he rethought his next few words. Rubbing the back of his head, he mumbled, "I need Gray, Gajeel, and Natsu to retrieve him."

The hall erupted in commotion, the loudest shout from Salamander, crying out his excitement. Master moved his hand from behind his head to rub his eyes. He knew he would get this type of reaction - everyone arguing with his decision except the three he mentioned. However, instead of stopping the members of Fairy Tail, he let them vent. He felt a small presence next to him, and he chanced glancing from behind his palm to see the concerned eyes of Lisanna.

"Are you sure that's wise?" she whispered. "You did say you wanted the least amount of damage…"

Sighing, the old man let his hand fall as his gaze fell upon the three in question. "I did say that, but they are the only ones with enough power to come close to the prowess of Jellal. Well, the only ones present, anyway." He waved his hand and hopped off the bar. "I'm going to bed. Brief them on their mission once everything calms down."

Lisanna nodded, watching the weary old man shuffle away. Glancing back out to the crowd, she doubted they would calm down any time soon, seeing as how chairs were now starting to be thrown at unsuspecting heads.

~.~

"Another hot date, Lucy?"

Lucy's cheeks flushed red as, once again, she was bombarded by Cana in the break room. Yes, she did have another date, but this one wasn't one that she was willing to talk about. She crossed her arms as Cana threw her arm around her shoulders.

"Unfortunately," the blonde mumbled. She hadn't bothered to dress up too nice, but she was in something different than her normal jeans and t-shirt getup that she normally wore to work. Compared to her date with Jason, she didn't try as hard to look nice. Instead, she dressed for comfort, wearing a light blue tank top accompanied with an ankle length, white loose skirt.

"Are you going on date number two with Jason?" Cana slid her arm from Lucy's shoulders and sat in the chair next to the blonde.

Levy sighed as she placed the coffee pot back onto the hot plate and took a seat on the opposite side of Lucy. Naturally, Lucy told Levy everything, but she didn't want anyone else to know, in case someone got the wrong idea. She didn't want rumors to fly that she was dating the boss to either further her career, or end her career and live as his mistress. Neither was true, and the hassle of trying to clarify the truth wasn't worth the stress.

"Jason never called her back," Levy said. "So, instead of sitting around waiting, she's moving on."

Cana gasped excitedly. Lucy didn't want to know what sort of conclusion the brunette was coming to. "Who is the new lucky man?" she asked.

"No one from this department," Lucy mumbled, laying her head on her crossed arms, which were laying on the table. "In fact, he doesn't even work here. So we should just drop it, okay?"

"Blind date? How exciting!"

The two younger women tried to deny that it was a blind date, but Cana was in her own world already.

"Just imagine, seeing him for the first time," she rambled. "He's sitting at the bar, looking cool and suave. He turns to you, and it's like an arrow sticks right into your chest, and it's absolutely love at first sight. You only sit with him for a whole minute before realizing that he's the one, and you two suddenly can't keep your hands off each other. Within moments you two are barreling into a hotel room -"

"Uh, absolutely not." Lucy stood from her chair, not wanting to think about her dinner any longer. "I'm going out with him for this one night, and, hopefully, we never see each other again." With that, she walked out of the break room.

Cana blinked at Levy as she took a flask from her purse and began pouring the liquid into the coffee mug the blonde had left.

"Is it really that bad?"

Levy shrugged. "She just isn't looking forward to it, is all. I'm pretty certain she's going to refuse any sort of...romantic notions he may slide her way."

"Sucks to be him then." Cana chuckled as she took a sip of her spiked coffee.

~.~

Lucy fidgeted with her purse strap. All day she had been on pins and needles, nervous about her dinner, her job, and just her life in general. When had things gone upside down for her? She wasn't supposed to be living on the edge.

If going to an impromptu dinner date with her boss was living on the edge, then her life was sadder than she thought. Sighing, she leaned her head against the back of the taxi seat. She had received an email from Mr. Fernandes - she refused to call him by his first name - stating that he was going to send a company car for her. She politely refused, without his knowledge, and called for a taxi. Had he not mentioned the name of the restaurant, she wouldn't have been able to take a taxi. But he did, so she's riding a taxi.

About halfway to the restaurant she started regretting her decision. What if he gets angry? Would he fire her because she didn't take the car he sent for her? What if he mentioned some random restaurant so she would take a taxi, when, in reality, dinner was somewhere else?

She groaned and leaned forward. No amount of conspiracy information was worth this.

"Are you going to be sick, Miss?" the driver asked, glancing at her through the rearview mirror.

She sat up quickly and waved her hands in front of her. "No, no. I'm fine. Thank you." Sighing, she turned to look out the window. Her stomach flipped as she realized they had reached their destination. She paid the driver, and stepped out of the car, suddenly regretting her clothing choice, if but a little.

He had chosen the most fancy, five star place in town - of course he did! - and she felt extremely underdressed. Oh well, if he had a problem with the way she was dressed, then he could just cancel their dinner. She wondered if she should wait and see if he was coming after her, but as soon as she saw a man in a spiffy tuxedo open the door, she doubted she was the first one to arrive.

The man smiled at her, noting her hesitation. "Mr. Fernandes is waiting for you, Miss," he said, holding his arm out to her. She gulped and stepped passed him, stepping into the dark restaurant. The windows all had the blinds closed, and the lights were dimmed, to give an intimate feel to the place. Her heart pounded as she realized the place was empty, save for a single man sitting at a table near the back.

Of course he would reserve the whole dining room at the most prominent restaurant in town. As if he hadn't flaunted his money enough when she met him the previous day when he made it perfectly clear that he was the boss. What the hell was he thinking? Likewise, what the hell was she thinking agreeing to go out with him?

Taking a deep breath, she decided to just get it over with. Just bite her cheek and suffer for a few hours, if that, and go home happy. Who knows? Maybe she could manage to get him to open up about everything she'd been wanting to know about Oak Town, which could possibly lead to more information about her new stalker. She was a trained reporter, after all. She bit her lip in silent resolve. Time to make the best out of a sucky event.

As she approached the table, her boss stood and smiled at her, moving around the table to pull her seat out for her. Even though they were the only ones in the room, his outfit still made her feel underdressed. Even though he wore black slacks, and a white button up shirt, he still looked more formal than she was.

Once she was seated, he retook his spot across from her, she allowed him to order whatever their finest wine was. She took that moment to really observe her surroundings. The dining room itself was fairly small, fitting about only ten tables. So, not only was it the most expensive, it had to also be the most exclusive joint. Again, she found herself wondering how much money he dished out to reserve the whole place.

"What's the special occasion?" she found herself asking, glancing back at Jellal, who was currently browsing the menu.

"I'm not a very sociable person," he said, glancing up at her, "so when I decide to eat out, I like my privacy." He smiled as he folded the menu and set it aside. Lucy took that as a sign that he was ready to order, when she didn't even know what type of food was served in a place like this. She grabbed her menu.

"Do you always take random girls from the companies you own to places like this?" She browsed the food items, and nearly fell from her chair when she saw the prices. There was no way a garden salad cost the same as her monthly rent. Okay, that was an exaggeration, but it was still way too overpriced.

"Don't worry about the cost. Get whatever you like." He smirked at her, and she regretted showing him her surprise. Okay, so she'd never been to some place so fancy. About ninety percent of the world's population has probably never been to a place like this, so who could blame her? _Live it up, Lucy, because you'll never get another chance like this in a million years_.

Deciding on steak and lobster, she closed her menu and smiled at him. Instead of numbers, the menu told her that it was market price. She didn't feel as bad if she didn't physically see how much her dinner would cost, and she was actually looking forward to her meal.

"I'm not that type of man," he said suddenly. She blinked at him, confused why he said that. He chuckled as the waiter brought their wine. He waited until the man poured the red liquid, then left. The bluenette grabbed his wine glass, twirling the stem in his fingers. "I don't pick girls at random for a date when I come into town. Like I said, I'm not very sociable. This is the first date I've had in nearly ten years."

Lucy choked on her drink. _Ten years?!_ A handsome, rich guy like him? Okay, he had to be lying, making himself seem more sensitive and genuine than he actually was. He probably had a secret room in his home where he housed at least twenty gullible young women. He shrugged at her reaction, seeming a little embarrassed for having admitted what he did.

"I want you to know that I'm not expecting anything from you," he continued. "This is just a casual dinner between boss and employee. Let's call it something along the lines of getting to know each other?"

Lucy glanced around them, unsure how to take what he was saying to her. There was no way a man in his position would pick her for a social dinner, not when he took her to a place like this, reserving the whole building so they were alone. He wanted something from her, and he was playing the "friend" card to get what he wanted. Well, Lucy Heartfilia was harder to convince than most blonde women her age. _Game on, Mr. Fernandes._

"No offense, Sir, but I'm sure there are other women who are more than willing to sit here with you." She discreetly placed her hands in her lap. "Why would you pick me? You have to know that I'd rather jump in front of a bus than put myself in such an uncomfortable situation like this."

"I thought you agreed to come here to save your job?"

_Among other things_...But she didn't voice that thought out loud. She shrugged. "I never said I was proud of my decision to agree to come here."

"So you put your pride on the line to come to dinner with a complete stranger, your boss, who's said to be ruthless, mean, and all around unpleasant? Just to save your low paying job as a low level reporter? You really have no hidden intentions to get me to promote you?"

She blushed at what he was insinuating. "No. Nothing like that. I put my pride on the line for a job that I absolutely love, despite the amount of money I get paid. Not to mention you also promised information that I'd be interested in. I'm a reporter inside and out, and I can't just turn away when someone tells me that they have information on something, no matter who that person may be. You just happen to be my boss, is all."

"So you're doing a story on the Oak Town explosion?"

"Uh, not really. Just research."

"Your supervisor must not be working you hard enough if you have time for a little bit of side research on something that's been settled a year ago. What will you do with the information you find?"

She shrugged, honestly able to admit that she hadn't really planned that far ahead. What she was looking into was more for her own personal gain, and if there was something that she found that could change the outcome of what was told, then she'd feel obligated to share it.

The waiter appeared again and took their dinner order. She smiled politely at him, feeling a little uncomfortable as she felt Jellal's eyes on her. But, as she took in the appearance of the waiter as she gave him her order, a flash of familiarity hit her. The room was dark, so she wasn't quite sure what it was...Until he turned away from her and she notice he had long hair pulled into a ponytail. She kept her eyes on him as he walked into the kitchen, but not without glancing at her and her date before disappearing through the door.

It couldn't be...what was he doing there? Was it even him? She fought the urge to dig the picture out of her purse. He looked like the tallest of the trio...if only she could clearly see his eyes. He didn't have any piercings on his face, so she started to doubt herself...but his hair looked exactly like that man's.

She discreetly glanced at the door behind her, where the man had ushered her in. If she remembered correctly, he had short black hair, black eyes, and his skin was incredibly pale. Maybe they were just look alikes? That had to be it. She'd been obsessing over those men ever since she first set eyes on them, that other men were starting to look like them. Besides, Salamander was missing. It was just a coincidence that these men looked like his partners. That's all it was...a coincidence.

"Is something wrong?"

She jumped and turned back to the man in front of her. He blinked at her behaviour, but all she could do was laugh it off with a wave of her hand.

"I'm fine. Maybe it's the wine?" Even though she only had a couple sips, but she could pretend to be a lightweight.

"I'll have them stop serving you, then." He reached across the table and snatched her wine glass. "Just water for you for the rest of the evening."

"That's probably best." Though she was a little sad at being denied the alcohol. She didn't want to try to get through this dinner without it. "Can I be forward with you?"

Jellal nodded, handing her glass to the long haired waiter. She stared at the waiter, who glanced at her, narrowing his eyes slightly. She was making him uncomfortable, and she felt a little bad for it. She blinked back to the man in front of her.

"You really lured me here with the promise of a secret about Oak Town. I know that you were only a member of the board, but can you tell me what really happened to that facility?"

He smirked at he placed his elbows on the table, lacing his fingers together to create a platform for his chin to rest on.

"Everything that was reported was what really happened, Miss Heartfilia."

Her heart sank slightly as the waiter brought out their food. One good thing about being the only patrons in a place like this was that the food came out them fast.

"But I can tell you what the researchers were working on when the explosion happened."

Lucy had been in mid-cut of her steak, and the waiter tensed slightly. She glanced at him as he proceeded to set down Jellal's dinner, along with condiments. Should they be discussing this with the waiter around? Then again, this place being so exclusive, they're all probably used to hearing things they shouldn't hear. Part of the job description for a place like this had to include the ability to keep their mouths shut about conversations they'd overhear.

"The company said they were researching products to better humanity," Lucy stated quietly, setting her knife on the plate to take a bite of the piece she just cut. The waiter left, only to return shortly after with the wine bottle to fill Jellal's glass. Her boss waited until the man had returned to the table to continue.

"They were. They were researching a cure."

"A cure?"

"A cure for various human diseases. Now, at the time, this particular cure had been approved for human testing. The people they were trying to help felt the researchers were trying to hurt them, not cure them. They began angry, and one of the patients got a hold of a flammable substance."

"I'm confused. What was the cure for?"

Jellal smiled, but it wasn't his usual, charming smile that he had been showing her all evening. This one was dark, and it sent shivers down her spine. The waiter had long since left with the wine bottle, but was called back to the table as Jellal took his glass and gulped the liquid quickly. He waited for the other man to approach the table before continuing.

"Weakness," he whispered. Lucy bit her lip, feeling a mixture of excitement and fear at the same time. "The researchers developed a cure they called Dragon Force, and, when applied to a human subject, said subject developed the aspects of a dragon. Or, a very large lizard, anyway, since dragons aren't real."

Lucy glanced at the waiter as the man poured the wine, seemingly unmoving. She became alarmed when the liquid overflowed, dark red wine spilling all over the table, and onto her white skirt. She quickly jumped up, her chair toppling to the ground. Everything that happened next happened so fast that she pretty much missed anything important.

One second, she was standing next to the table, quickly wiping the wine off her skirt with her napkin, positive that it was going to stain; the next moment she was in a man's hold, his arm locked around her throat, his other arm grabbing her arm, twisting it back so it was held between her body and his.

She only managed a small squeak at the realization that it was Jellal holding her, and the waiter was in front of her, a large knife in his hand pointing at the man behind her.

"Let her go," the waiter growled, causing Jellal to chuckle behind her.

"You people must have thought I was stupid not to realize you were following me." He lifted her arm higher, sending a shock of pain from her arm through her whole body, causing her to cry out.

"I won't hesitate just because you have a hostage," the waiter said, shifting his knife so it was pointing at her neck. She could feel herself begin to panic. Would he seriously hurt her to get to her boss?

"I think you will," the man behind her whispered. "This isn't just some random chick I picked up off the street."

"I never said I'd kill her, but I will do what it takes to make sure I take you down, Jellal." Without a second thought, he jumped forward, slashing his arm, the knife barely missing her face as Jellal jumped back out of reach. It was then that Lucy saw the waiter wasn't _holding _a knife, but his hand _was _the knife. _How the hell…?_

A loud explosion sounded behind her, and she was forced out of Jellal's hold, crashing against the table they were just sitting at. Things were about to get messy, and she was caught in the middle of it. With no time to ponder what was going on, she grabbed her steak knife - the only form of protection she could muster in such a short amount of time - and she quickly made her way to the back wall, the only safe place in the room so far. When she turned back to the commotion, she saw that the front door, and part of the wall, had been blown away, and suddenly Jellal was fighting, not one, but three men.

Her fear quickly diminished as her excitement took full control. She wanted to be the one to get the pictures this time, and she would be the one to get credit for writing the true story behind what was going on. The fight was moving outside as Jellal kicked Salamander out of the building, and she wasn't going to miss a single moment.

She jumped for her purse, which had fallen off her chair when she crashed into the table, and pulled her phone out, knowing which buttons to push for the camera without having to look. Was what she doing dangerous and stupid? Probably. But this wasn't the worse thing she'd done for her job.

Jellal was surrounded by the three men, each one now wearing masks, though the blue haired man didn't seem concerned in the slightest. In fact, he looked like he was enjoying himself. Much more so now than when he was sitting at the table with her. Lucy only allowed herself a moment to feel offended by this fact.

"Long time no see, boys," Jellal said, glancing at each man. "How is everyone?"

"Getting your room ready," the ice man said. "They're all so excited that you're coming over for a visit."

"Are they? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I hadn't intended on actually making an appearance."

"That's why we're the ones sent to bring you there," the metal man said, his knife hand growing until it was a large sword.

"I wonder why Makarov sent you peons. Where's Erza?"

"Don't worry about Erza," Salamander shouted. "Your fight is with us!"

With that, he jumped towards Jellal, his fist a burning ball of flames, which the blue haired man dodged with ease. The other two attacked at the same time, a mixture of ice and iron descending upon Jellal. Their attacks created a small explosion, nothing like what happened the last time she met these men, but it was still enough to make her take cover inside the ruined dining room. When the smoke cleared, she watched as the three men fought with her boss. Was he still her boss? There was no way he'd let her keep her job now, if he intended for her to live.

Jellal kept up with their attacks, seemingly at ease, like he was used to being attacked by three men in the middle of the street. The three men in question looked like they were working hard against him, flames, ice, and metal shards scattering around them, though they did manage to corner him. Lucy kept her phone camera rolling, not wanting to miss a single moment of them apprehending a bad guy - was that they were even doing? She didn't seem concerned at all that the roles might have been switched. What if Jellal was the good guy, and these men were actually bad?

She suddenly felt like she was commentating a comic book. Her focus was solely on the fight in front of her, however, that she failed to notice the figure behind her.

Jellal smirked as Salamander threw a flaming punch at his head, which he easily grabbed and stopped, the flames not bothering him in the slightest. He tightened his hold on the younger man's fist, and threw him onto Gray, and the pair was sent flying into a parked car across the street.

Gajeel took that opportunity to dive in from the side, his sword arm slashing towards Jellal's middle as the other man's body was turned from the force he used to throw the other two. In a flash, Jellal jumped out of the way of Gajeel's blade, the edge of his shirt barely catching the sharp tip. As he jumped back, however, his heel caught an uneven edge on the sidewalk, and stumbled, allowing Gajeel to thrust towards him again, this time, his blade running through the other man's shoulder. Luckily for Jellal, Gajeel had been ordered against killing, but the sense of victory as his blade traveled through the man's shoulder was still a good feeling.

The victory was short lived, however, when the body of Jellal burst into dust. Gajeel stumbled forward from the force he used to stab the other man, but he regained his footing quickly, looking around for the other man. Natsu and Gray fought against each other, scrambling over each other to get off the now destroyed car.

The three of them froze when a woman's cry was heard. They looked back toward the restaurant, only to see an untouched Jellal holding Lucy in another arm lock, though it looked like he wasn't holding back this time. The woman gritted her teeth to keep from crying out again against the pain she was feeling in her arm.

Natsu jumped off the car, and he held his fist up against Jellal.

"Let her go! She has nothing to do with this, Jellal."

The blue haired man chuckled. "I think you know differently, Salamander. This girl holds a very important key to my future; to your future. Say goodbye, gentlemen. This is the last time you'll see this woman alive."

Natsu charged for Jellal, but his attack fell upon open air as the pair before him disappeared without a trace.

~.~  
**AN: It's over 5,000! Words, that is. I figured, since it's been so long, I'd give you guys an extra long, action packed chapter. But then I was evil and left it at a cliffhanger. I figured it was a good place to end, seeing as how if I had kept going this chapter would turn into an Energizer Bunny, and it would see no end! Anywho, hopefully this should keep you readers sated for awhile. If there's errors, of it seems choppy, let me know. I've been working on this thing all day, and now that it's 1:30, I realize that I've been awake for almost 24 hours now...I might go over this chapter at a later date and make it better, but for now, I give you this. I hope you like it. Please let me know. ^_^ I enjoy receiving reviews, whether they're nice, mean, or constructive. It means that people are actually reading this, and that gives me incentive to continue, even though my updates are few and far between.**


	11. The Key

Chapter 11 - The Key

Lucy groaned as she regained consciousness, her body feeling heavy, her head pounding. She didn't remember going out drinking last night, but she felt like she was up until dawn, throwing back alcohol like it was water - not like she'd ever done that before, but that was definitely how she felt. How was she going to work feeling like she was?

She clenched her eyes tight as the sun blared in her face, allowing herself to enjoy laying in her soft bed until she opened her eyes and realized the time. If the sun was this high already, she was totally late. Sighing, she rubbed her face in her pillow and reached for the night stand for her phone.

Two things startled her. One: Her pillow was lumpy, and it didn't smell like her pillow at all; and two: there was no night stand where it should be. Did she come stumbling home after her drinking, and rearrange her room? She was almost afraid to open her eyes and find out. However, she couldn't just not open her eyes.

Slowly, almost a little terrified, she opened her eyes. The moment she saw the white lace curtain against a red wood four poster bed column, she gave a little shriek and threw the covers over her head. Okay, she wasn't in her room, and she was going to just accept the fact that she wouldn't open her eyes again. She hated four poster beds, especially the girly ones that reminded her of her days back home. She groaned and rolled herself out of the bed, gently placing herself on the soft, carpeted floor on her knees.

"Where the hell am I?" she whispered as she rested her forehead on her hands. So, from what she gathered, she was out drinking, and she ended up in a strange bed...Did she go home with someone? She gasped, quickly raising up, frantically looking around the room. She would never go home with a stranger, drunk or no. The room looked oddly ordinary, very generic. White walls, gray carpet, matching desk, armoire, dresser, and bed. There were three total doors: two white wooden doors on either side of her, and a double glass balcony door, which was the source of the sunlight.

Slowly memories of the previous night started floating back to her. She shakily stood, having to grab onto the bed for support. Why did she feel like she hadn't used her legs in weeks? It was just last night that she was out to dinner with her boss, then the restaurant blew up, she witnessed a battle, and then...she couldn't remember what happened after. She could clearly see Salamander and Jellal fighting, but she couldn't see what came next.

Well, whatever happened, she didn't end up in her own home, which meant something bad must have happened, and she had to get out immediately. She tested her legs, letting go of the bed post, and walking a few steps. Feeling had slowly started going back into her legs and she was able to cautiously walk without support. She made it to the first door, but it was locked. She turned around and urgently made her way to the door across the room, the strength in her legs returning with each step. The door opened, but she found that it was only a bathroom with the biggest tub she'd ever seen.

She turned to the door leading outside, and made for that one. She opened the door, relieved to find it unlocked, but the sight outdoors shocked and stopped her. It was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky; the temperature was at a very comfortable warm, not too hot, and there was a light breeze. She slowly made her way out onto the balcony, fear quickly overflowing. She was two stories up, but that wasn't what terrified her. As far as she could see, she could only see trees. She couldn't see the other side of the house - or, more appropriately, mansion - but the tree line curved to surround the property. From where she stood, there was no place to escape to.

She made her way to the railing, and looked down to the yard below her. Okay, even if there was any possible way for her to get to the ground without injuring herself, she had absolutely no idea where she was. She couldn't risk getting lost in a forest without any sense of direction. Despite realizing she was in a strange house, with no recollection of how she got there, or who was there with her, she wasn't stupid enough to just run. She was a strong girl, she could protect herself until she found out what was going on, right?

"Ah, you're awake."

Lucy jumped and turned around, shocked to see Jellal standing in the doorway, smiling at her. So, she was with him. Did he spike her drink at dinner? She hated how she couldn't remember anything.

He tilted his head slightly. "Did you want to get dressed for the day? I'm sure you wouldn't want to spend the day in your undergarments, am I right?"

Lucy looked down, blushing furiously when she realized she was only in her bra and panties. She tried to cover herself with her arms.

"What the hell happened?" she yelled. "We didn't...did we?"

Jellal laughed at her, shaking his head and stepping back into the room. "No, we didn't. Honestly, I'm not sure how you ended up like that. You were fully clothed when I brought you here."

She cautiously followed him into the room, keeping a close eye on him as he rummaged through the top drawer of the dresser. She slowly made her way back to the bed, grabbing the blanket and wrapping it around her.

"Why am I here?" she asked. "What is this place?"

The blue haired man grabbed a simple black shirt with a pair of jeans from the dresser, and walked to her, holding the clothing out to her.

"You can use the bathroom to get changed. I bet you'd rather have clothes on before we get to the more serious talk." His smile dropped in an instant as she took the clothes from him. An alarm started blaring in her mind as his face went from pleasant to absolutely lifeless. "You have ten minutes." With that, he turned on his heel, and started walking away from her towards the locked door.

"What? How do you expect me to get ready in just ten minutes?"

"I wouldn't waste that time complaining, if I were you. I'm taking you somewhere whether you're dressed or not, and I assume you'd rather be dressed."

He gave her one last look before leaving the room, with an audible click as she could tell the door was locked again. She stomped her foot in frustration, letting out a growl, but she dropped the blanket and started getting dressed anyway. There was no way she'd be able to shower and clean herself up in just ten minutes. Besides, he was the evil one here, she didn't think he deserved for her to be sparkly clean. She didn't smell bad, so she wasn't in any desperate need to shower.

~.~

Lucy wasn't sure where he was going to take her, but she definitely wasn't expecting the dining room. Apparently she needed to eat and build her strength, for whatever reason he wasn't telling her. She felt like she had seen so many different sides of Jellal that she wasn't sure which one was the real one. Was the intimidating boss from work, the charming man during their date, or even the violent villain fighting her three heroes.

Setting down her fork, she silently wished they were okay, especially Salamander. The last image she could remember was him flying towards her and Jellal. It warmed her insides to know that he had been angry that Jellal had her, and he wanted to rescue her. He really was like a superhero to her.

The way he tried to get her away from Jellal was just so heroic, in her eyes. He even said some words before then…

She paused, her glass of water froze in midair. The conversation between Jellal and Salamander crashed into her, and the meaning behind the words caused her to drop her water. Jellal jumped and looked at her from across the long table. Lucy sat with both her hands on the table, her eyes gazing over like she was staring off into a far away land.

"_Let her go! She has nothing to do with this, Jellal!"_

Lucy slowly stood from her seat, but there was a strange man by her side in an instant.

"_I think you know differently, Salamander."_

Her gaze moved up to Jellal, who sat, watching her, his eyes narrowed.

"_This girl holds a very important key to my future; to your future."_

She didn't know what to think. Just what the hell did she have to do with anything? A key? What key? She only owned two keys, that she knew of; one went to her apartment, and the other to her father's house. Well, her mother was a collector of keys, but that was still at her father's house, so wouldn't it make sense to go to his house instead of kidnaping her and taking her to some strange place that, for all she knew, wasn't even anywhere near Magnolia.

"What's the matter, Lucy?"

Lucy jumped out of her thoughts and glared at the man who sat so calmly across the table from her. She clenched her hands on the table, not wanting to alert the man who stood behind her to doing anything like grab her.

"What did you mean when you told Salamander that I had a key?"

Jellal smiled as he set his utensils on his plate. He gently wiped his mouth with his cloth napkin and stood from the table. She was suddenly tired of his games, whatever they may be. What kind of sane person would have a pleasant breakfast with his hostage? He was being incredibly polite, and it was getting on her nerves. Hell, she was raised in this sort of environment, and she ran away from it. She could count all the times her father pretended to be polite to guests, just to turn around and stab them in the back the moment something that benefited him popped up. Was Jellal just like her father? She felt bile rise in her throat at the thought.

He calmly walked around the table, never once taking his eyes off her. He held up his hand to the man behind her as he approached, causing the man to back away. He gave her a soft smile, before lifting his arm and striking her across the face. She was hit with such a force that she went tumbling back, tripping over her chair and falling to the floor. She had been so surprised by the action that she didn't even feel the sting.

"I was enjoying a wonderful breakfast," he told her, calmly. He knelt down next to her and gently patted her head. "How dare you ruin the pleasant moment." He grabbed her hair and pushed her down. She cried out as she could physically feel her hair being torn from her scalp. She had no choice but to follow what he wanted from her. Jellal looked up at the man. "Clear the table. I've lost my appetite."

The man bowed and proceeded to do as he was told. Jellal let go of Lucy, but continued to sneer down at her.

"You really want to know why I brought you here?" he whispered, leaning down on the floor so his mouth was level with her ear. "You're going to help me, dear." With that, he grabbed her arms and forced her up. He then grabbed her arms, holding them behind her in a lock so she couldn't move them without shooting pain through her arms.

He pushed her through the doors of the dining room and led her to the study across the hall. She barely had enough time to register where he was taking her before he practically shoved her against the bookcase, but he finally let her go. She immediately wrapped her arms across her chest, rubbing out the aches. She kept a watchful eye on him, fully on guard now that she knew he actually meant to hurt her.

He ran his hands over the bindings of the books as he paced next to her, a small, psychotic smile on his face. When his fingers fell over an older looking leather book, and he pulled it from its place. He opened it, and she was able to see that, instead of paper, there was a cutout big enough to fit a big red button. Upon pushing the button, the fireplace only a few feet away from her groaned, and she jumped as there was a loud grinding noise. The bricks of the fireplace began to shift, revealing a doorway.

She glanced back at Jellal, and was able to just barely jump out of his way when he moved to grab her again. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but she was not going to let him manhandle her again, and force her into a dark place that she had no idea what lay beyond. Maybe he was some sort of crazed sex psycho, and he had a secret room full of torture devices that he planned on using on her. No wonder he never had any dates, according to his earlier claim from their dinner. He'd lure unsuspecting, gold digging women with his money, and he'd take them to his secret torture chamber where he'd jack off to the painful screams of his victims, probably rubbing their blood all over his body…

_Okay, Lucy, time to stop…_

She gulped and walked willingly, not wanting him to touch her again. He went through the doorway first, and she closely followed. Well, what else was she supposed to do? He obviously needed her for something, so he wasn't leading her somewhere to kill her - just yet - and she didn't even know how to escape this house. Play his game, and then she'll take care of her escape. She just hoped they weren't too far out of Magnolia.

The passage was bright, but cold. She shivered and rubbed her hands over her arms, trying to get the goosebumps down. Thankfully the hallway wasn't too long, and they soon emerged into a wide room, quite ordinary, if she had to say so, considering what she had been expecting.

There was a couch, a fireplace, a coffee table...nothing torturous, or painful looking. However, as she was searching for pain tools, her eyes fell upon a large sheet covered cylindrical object in the opposite corner from where they were.

"Would you like a seat?" Jellal asked, walking towards the fireplace. She refused, keeping her body close to the exit. She shifted her gaze between Jellal and the figure in the corner.

"Now, back to this 'key' that I mentioned…" She saw that he had a small brandy glass with, what looked like, brandy. He took a sip, and swirled the glass. "You remember what I mentioned about Dragon Force?"

She nodded.

"Dragon Force wasn't the only drug they were producing, but it was the most effective." He set his glass down, and walked to the sheet, gently placing his hand on it. "Before injecting it into various candidates, we tested it on one person. The effects worked perfectly, but the drug slowly started taking over his consciousness. It made him hallucinate, think he was in a different world, and that he was actually turning into a dragon."

Lucy gulped again, inching towards the entryway that led to the exit. Could she run fast enough and get away from him?

"Of course, we all thought he was just going crazy." He turned to Lucy and smirked. "But we started to realize that the drug was making him turn into a dragon. We had to stop the transformation, but without killing our subject."

"What did you do?" She couldn't help it. She was a researcher by nature, and the story he was telling her got her curious. Who was the subject? What was he hiding under that sheet? What did she have to do with anything?

"We put him to sleep. A sort of forced coma, if you will. Unfortunately, the calculations were off, and we nearly killed him. Thankfully, one of our scientists was a quick thinker, and she was able to, somehow, pull his soul out of his body, taking away the dragon aspect of his mind, but kept the dragon aspect of his body."

"Is he still alive?"

"Just barely so." He said this with a whisper, so quiet that she almost missed it. He turned away from the object, and looked at her. "That's where you come in, my dear." He walked up to her, but she was so nervous that she couldn't run from him. "Do you know about the celestial magic?"

She shook her head.

"I wouldn't think so. It's an ancient magic, very powerful. There are only a handful of individuals who know how use it properly. The scientist who sealed our subject was one of them. Unfortunately, she died a few years ago, leaving us with no idea how to work the magic and bring him back. We were stuck, until we realized she had a family."

Lucy couldn't help a gasp that escaped her lips. He didn't kill an innocent family, did he? Were children part of the equation? Judging by his actions these last few days, she wouldn't put it past him to harm children. That monster.

"Of course there was nothing we could do at the time, since the magic was transferred to her child, and that child had yet begun to mature. So we had to wait. And wait, we did." He gently stroked her hair, playing with the strands, causing it to fall through his fingers.

She had a sinking suspicion who he was talking about, since he hadn't taken his eyes off her while he told her that last big. However, she hated to be the bearer of bad news, but she didn't possess magic, and her mother didn't work for a secret project at Elemental Environments, especially since her father owned a sort of enemy company.

Jellal scoffed as he took a step back from her. "I see the doubt in your eyes, my dear, but it's all true. Yes, your mother was the mage who sealed away our subject, and she died protecting it, making sure no one could free him. You were too young and too weak for us to use you, so we had to wait for you to grow and mature into the beautiful wizard that you are, just so I can siphon your energy to help free him."

With lightning fast reflexes, he grabbed her arm before she could run from him. His words made no sense to her, and she refused to be any part of his crazy antics. At this point, she didn't care if she knew where she was or not, she wanted out, away from this man.

She kneed him in the groin, smirking slightly as he grunted and let go of her, his hands holding his crotch. She took this opportunity to run, back down the brick passageway. She could just barely hear him yelling for her, but she didn't dare stop. She reached the study and, without stopping, she ran into the hallway, and towards the first door she saw.

Locked...from the opposite side. Groaning in frustration, she continued her search for anyway out of this forsaken house. After the third door, she started becoming desperate. She could hear Jellal calling for his guards, ordering them to stop her. Without another thought, she ran up the stairs and into her room, the only room with the unlocked door leading outside.

She opened the door and stepped up to the railing. There wasn't a tree nearby that she could jump on, nor was there any ivy or moss creeping up the side of the house that she could climb down. Her hands gripped the railing, feeling a little defeated knowing she couldn't very well run very far if she was injured by falling; she very well could try scaling the wall, but the chances of her falling were greater than her success, and she'd no doubt hurt herself from the fall.

She squealed as a pair of arms wrapped around her middle, locking her arms tight against her body. She wiggled and kicked with all her might as the man pulled her away from her balcony. She fought, her vision of the outside world disappearing as he pulled her out the room. Dread filled her as she realized he'd be taking her back to Jellal, and who knows what else.

She fought, but she was completely helpless in the arms of the over powerful muscle head. She groaned in frustration. What good was taking those self-defense classes if she couldn't use it when it mattered most? Her arms were useless - the man was practically breaking her bones with how tight he was holding her - and her kicking didn't seem to bother him in the slightest.

She bit her lip as he took her back into the study, back through the hidden passageway, and he dropped her - literally - onto the couch. Jellal stood next to the sheet-covered thing, and he harshly ordered the man to leave. With a grunt, and a slight glare to her, he turned and stomped down from where he came. There was that unmistakable grinding noise as she realized he was closing them in.

She clutched the edges of the couch when she realized they were alone. Hands were placed on her shoulders, and she jumped, whipping her head around to see the creepy smirk of Jellal.

"I sure hope you didn't exert too much energy," he whispered. "You're going to need every bit of it to survive what I have planned for you."

Her stomach dropped to her feet as fear washed over her. What the hell did that mean? She groaned as she quickly tried to come up with another escape plan, but without knowing her location, how to escape the secret room, or if she could even overpower Jellal, her hopes were low.

One thing was for sure, though: No way in hell was she going to let him intimidate her with threats of death.

"Bring it," she said, smirking, her courage showing for just a moment.

Jellal chuckled softly as he stroked the top of her head again. "I'll make sure you enjoy it. Well, I'll sure enjoy it, anyway." All she could to do was gasp as her vision went dark. Pressure was put on her neck, and as she reached up to grasp at whatever he put on her, she felt herself grow dizzy, quickly finding it hard to breathe. He had put a bag over her head, that creep! She could barely register his voice as she slowly grew unconscious. "Don't fight it, Lucy Heartfilia. It will be much less painful for you to just let go."

But she fought. She reached up to his face and clawed at him, but he didn't budge. She, on the other hand, was slowly slipping down the couch. She knew that the harder she fought, the quicker she'd pass out, but she'd fight until the end. No one was going to come and save her - no one knew where she was. She had to rely on herself. She was going to save herself. She was not going to let this man beat her.

Jellal sighed as he stood up, removing the bag from the girl's head. She wasn't dead, but he couldn't very well have her awake and conscious, fighting him, making his job harder. He approached the sheet, and gently ran his hand over the cloth.

"You better hurry, Salamander," he whispered as he gently pulled the sheet down. "There won't be much of a damsel to rescue if you don't." He smirked at his reflection in the glass, the wires and cords from inside the machine exciting him. He clenched his fists, unable to hide the anticipation of what's to come. Glancing back at the unconscious blonde, he couldn't wait for the little room to be filled with her screams; he shivered as his body grew excited for the future.

~.~

**AN: Please review!**


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